by Marla Monroe
“We were hoping you and Tommy could go with us to The Pizza Party for supper,” Scope finished.
“Um, I’d love to, but I can’t tonight. I’ve, um, got to be somewhere at six. Maybe another time?” she asked.
Scope’s face fell. She hated seeing it, but there was nothing she could do. She was working a shift at the convenience store.
“You’re working at that store tonight, aren’t you,” Gunner said in a quiet, deep voice that was so sexy it sent chills down her spine.
All she could do was nod at that. Her body had reacted much too intimately for her to be able to form a coherent sentence at that moment. Her panties were literally wet with her pussy juices. That had never happened to her before. The man hadn’t touched her, let alone kissed her.
“How about Saturday night then?” Scope asked, stepping a little in front of Gunner.
“Um, yeah. That would be great. I know Tommy would love it. It’s his favorite place to eat,” she told him.
Scope nodded. “Of course it is. Pizza is just about the only thing in a kid’s food group. Great. We’ll pick you and Tommy up Saturday. How about six?”
She smiled and nodded. “That would be great. Thanks.”
“Do you need help finishing up since we took so much of your time?” Scope asked.
She was sure her jaw dropped open all the way to the floor from the shock of his offer before she managed to get her mouth closed again. Had she really heard him right? Had he offered to help her clean up?
“No! No thanks. I’ve got it.” She squeaked like a little mouse when he leaned down and gave her a quick but lethal kiss on the lips.
There was no mistaking the surge of fluids from her pussy this time. Both men had an impossible effect on her body. Two men. Not one, but two. It wasn’t unheard of there in Perkins City, but Darla wasn’t a sultry beauty or sexy vixen.
“We’ll see you Saturday. If you need anything, Darla, call us,” Scope said, handing her a card. “That has both of our cell numbers on it. Either one will work. Anything at all, sweetness.”
She watched them walk away, mesmerized by the way their asses moved in the tight jeans. The play of muscles across their shoulders as they moved was evident even through the shirts they wore. Why hadn’t she noticed the hint of some type of tattoo peeking out from the bottom of Gunner’s sleeves before? She wanted to see all of them and find out if Scope had them, too.
She shook her head when the door closed behind them and returned to the kitchen, and the mountain of dirty dishes that needed washing. She realized that for those few minutes that the men had been in the café, nothing had registered around her except them. Now, as she walked toward the kitchen, she realized that the world hadn’t stopped after all. There were still people eating, and Betty was ringing up a customer, oblivious to the fact that Darla’s world had somehow changed—tilted maybe. All she did know was that those two men were hell on her libido, and she was in a world of trouble.
The problem was, she wasn’t sure she cared.
* * * *
When Saturday afternoon turned into evening, Darla finally got a case of the butterflies. Her stomach felt as if they were more like dive bombers practicing their maneuvers. Why had she agreed to do this? Nothing could come of it. They wouldn’t want to take on her and her son and they were a package deal. All they wanted was a fling, and since Scope already knew her, she was the most likely choice.
She fussed at herself for allowing hormones to interfere with her normally realistic thought processes. If she’d kept them out of the situation, she never would have agreed to this. Tommy was excited about going, though he wasn’t sure about who they were going with. They’d only met that one time and it had been quick.
“Mom. I can’t find my other shoes. I don’t want to wear my dirty ones.” Tommy stood just outside the open door to her bedroom.
“Just a second, hon, and I’ll come help you. Might have been a little easier if you’d cleaned up your room today instead of watching that marathon of Godzilla movies,” she said with what she knew didn’t pass for the stern look she reached for.
He grinned. “Yeah, but they were awesome and you enjoyed them just as much as I did.”
She sighed and swiped the mauve lipstick across her lips before closing it up and dropping it to the dresser.
“Let’s go look. They’ll be here soon.” She followed Tommy up the short hall to his domain and winced when she stepped into the disaster of a room.
While she had to admit it wasn’t nearly as trashed as a lot of kids’ rooms were these days, it wasn’t the neat look she wished for. They tackled the mess, putting things away as they searched.
“Got them, Mom! They were under my desk. I remember shoving them there so they didn’t get dirty,” he said sheepishly. “I can’t believe I forgot.”
“We’ll finish the room later. Finish getting ready.”
Darla left her son sitting on his bed, pulling on his newest sneakers. They weren’t all that new anymore, and she was sure he could use at least a half size bigger now. She’d use her next paycheck from the second job to buy him another pair. Then he could throw out the ratty pair. She sighed. If he did need a size larger, he didn’t need to be trying to wear the ones he was putting on now for his everyday shoes. It wasn’t good for his feet. Maybe she could squeeze two pairs out of the check.
The light buzz of the broken doorbell stopped her in her tracks. They were here and she wasn’t ready. Well, physically she was, but mentally and probably emotionally she wasn’t. Somehow she figured all the time in the world wouldn’t prepare her to handle their kind of presence. Even one of them alone might prove to be too much for her. They were way out of her league.
“Is that them, Mom?” Tommy asked, walking past her to reach for the door handle.
Someone knocked, startling her back into action. “I expect it is, hon. Go ahead and let them in.”
Tommy opened the door and peered up at the two men standing in the doorway. She couldn’t see her son’s face, but she tried to see Scope and Gunner the way her son would. They were tall, intimidating men with intense eyes that could be scary if you had something to hide. Scope, with his odd, light brown eyes, and Gunner, with the deep blue appearance of a tropical horizon, held her son immobile for all of two seconds.
“Hi. Mom said you can come in,” he said, and stepped back to let the two overly large men into their cramped living area.
“Hi, Tommy. How are you doing?” Scope asked her son.
“I’m fine. Thank you,” he said with a solemn expression. Then he turned to Gunner and held out his hand. “How are you doing?”
Gunner went to one knee and took her son’s hand in his. “We’re doing fine, Tommy. It’s good to see you again.”
When he stood up and took her hand in his, Darla had to squeeze her legs together to keep from creaming her panties again.
“You look wonderful, Della,” he said.
Scope didn’t mess around holding her hand. He pulled her into a full-body hug and kissed her lightly on the nose. “Hey. Is your doorbell working?”
“Hasn’t worked for a couple of years,” Tommy told him. “Mom’s asked the landlord to fix it, but he never does. He doesn’t fix much at all around here. Mom has to.”
“Tommy. They don’t want to hear about that,” she said before turning back to them. “I think we’re ready if you are.”
She watched the two men exchange glances before they looked around the living area as if searching for problems. She couldn’t help the cringe that went through her at how they must see their home. It wasn’t nice, but it was clean. She would never allow her son to stay anywhere dirty or dangerous. Yeah, there were some inconvenient things about the place, but the rent was within her limits, and it had been freshly painted with new flooring when she’d first rented it.
“Sounds good,” Scope said. “Let’s go then. I don’t know about you two, but I’m starved. Missed lunch today.”
“I didn
’t think you could possibly have room for it after the amount of food you put away at breakfast,” Gunner said.
Darla swore he’d made a joke. Somehow that didn’t fit with the tight half grin he gave so sparingly or the normally stoic expression he kept in place. She cocked her head and studied him for a second. Maybe he was lightening up some and just needed time being out from under the strict life he’d been leading. He was among strangers here, while Scope had lived here most of his life. It had to be tough to adjust.
“What did you say?” Scope asked with a frown. “Wrong ear, man.”
Gunner spared his friend a slight smile. “I said I was hungry, too. Let’s go.”
When Gunner’s eyes met hers, she nearly laughed out loud when he winked at her.
What the hell? Had he just shared an inside joke with her? Was he flirting with her? It went against what little she knew and had figured out about the man so far. Instead of a cut-and-dried answer to who Gunner Barnes was, she found he was much more complex and had the ability to change like a chameleon.
Scope took her elbow and guided her through the door. Once they were all outside on the dinky porch, Gunner took her key and locked the door behind them. He stared at the door and the locks for a second before returning the key to her. She had the feeling he didn’t approve of the flimsy locks. She didn’t either, but couldn’t afford to have them replaced with anything better, and the landlord sure didn’t care.
Scope opened the front door of the truck so Tommy could climb in. Then he walked around to the driver’s side while Gunner opened the back door for her. She climbed in and buckled up, making sure her son did the same. When Gunner got in the back on the other side of her, she felt as if she’d been punched in the stomach. Every nerve in her body seemed to stand up and take notice of the man sitting less than two feet from her.
When she looked up, it was to find Scope’s eyes watching her from the rearview mirror. He smiled and winked as if he knew exactly what she was thinking and feeling. The entire episode had taken less than a minute yet she felt as if she’d been caught in a bubble that defied time. What was going on with her? She’d never felt this way before or reacted to a man like this.
“Mom. Look at Scope’s truck. It’s really cool,” her son said, interrupting her mini-meltdown.
She smiled, trying to see what her son was seeing, but failing miserably. It looked like a truck to her.
“I don’t think your mom appreciates the luxury edition, Tommy,” Scope said as he looked over the seat at her. “He likes the backup camera and the navigation package.”
“Oh,” was all she could manage to get out. Thank God he started the truck and backed out of the drive. Darla wasn’t sure she could have said anything else in that moment.
While Scope kept a steady conversation going with her son in the front seat, all of Darla’s attention was focused on the man sitting next to her. She kept her gaze directed out the side window or on the back of her son’s seat. She didn’t like the way she felt out of control. She’d never had this experience before.
“We’ll be there in a minute, Darla. Relax. No one is going to hurt you.” Gunner’s deep voice sounded almost sad to her. She couldn’t help but turn and stare at him.
“I know. I’m just nervous. I haven’t been out with anyone in a long time. I’m not scared, Gunner. Not of you or Scope.” She hoped it sounded convincing to the man. She really wasn’t scared of them—of herself, maybe. This was all new to her.
“Here we are,” Scope said as he pulled into the parking lot. “Looks like there’s a good parking place right up front. I haven’t been here in years, guys. Has the menu changed much?”
Before she could answer, her son did for her. “I’m only eight, so I wasn’t born the last time you were probably here. You’ll have to ask Mom. All I know is it’s awesome.”
Darla could hear the smile in her son’s voice all the way in the back seat. He loved coming here. Besides the great pizza, there were always friends of his here to visit with and there was an arcade for the kids to play in. Parents loved it because there were cameras in it that fed to several monitors all over the restaurant part so you could keep an eye on the kids.
She felt guilty that she couldn’t afford to take him very often. He didn’t beg to go like a lot of kids his age would do. Whenever they did go, she made sure he would have at least five dollars to play in the arcade so he wouldn’t feel completely deprived. Today would be no different. She’d managed to scare up six dollars today.
Once they’d parked, she waited and let Gunner help her down from the truck. She was thankful that Tommy waited for her by the side of the truck instead of running inside by himself. He smiled up at her, obviously excited to be going. From the way he shuffled back and forth, it wasn’t easy waiting on them.
“Okay, sport. Let’s find a good place to sit.” Scope led the way with her son right next to him.
“He’s a really good kid, Darla. You’ve raised him well.” Gunner’s words spoke volumes to her. She didn’t know why, but having his approval felt better than anyone else’s had over the years.
“Thanks. He’s really wonderful. The only real problem we’ve had is the state of his room,” she said with a laugh.
“I think that’s part of being a kid, and a boy at that. Picking up your room makes you a nerd or something,” he said.
“Believe me. I pick my battles and his room isn’t really one of them.” It was odd how easy it was to talk to him. She wouldn’t have believed it from their first meeting back at Rizzoli’s.
She liked Gunner. She liked Scope. Darla knew she was lying about that, though. Like was far too tame a word for how they made her feel. The question was, did they feel the same way about her, and would she pay the ultimate price for allowing anything to happen between them in the long run? They had the power to devastate her where no one else ever had, including her son’s father. For better or for worse, Darla was going to take a chance on them and see where it landed her. Somehow she knew they were worth any heartache ahead of her.
Chapter Seven
From the moment they sat down in The Pizza Party, Darla felt at peace with her decision. Her son was old enough to understand dating, and that it didn’t always end with people getting married. She would make sure they talked about anything that came up so he would be prepared when the relationship ultimately ended. She couldn’t believe that the two men would be interested in anything remotely long term. More importantly, she couldn’t allow herself or her son to hope.
Both of them would enjoy and thrive on the attention from the two men. It was a win-win situation for the four of them. She was sure they needed a sense of normalcy in their lives and dating would go a long way in doing that for them. Plus, she was safe. They could flirt and tease and maybe even court some without the worry that she would try and hook her claws into them. Maybe they didn’t know that yet, but they would soon enough. She’d make sure they knew she didn’t expect their budding relationship to go anywhere.
“The menu looks the same,” Scope was saying.
“I don’t think much has changed,” she agreed.
“Those monitors look pretty new. I like the way you can see all corners of the game room,” Gunner said, peering from one monitor to another.”
“Yeah. I think you’re right. I don’t remember them being that big or that clear,” Scope said. He looked over at her. “Have there been any problems around here that they’d upgrade like that?”
“No. There’s never really been any trouble in Perkins City. I know there were a few issues involving the bank and a real estate company that was tied up with Darla, but her men took care of that. Other than some occasional egging and yard rolling at Halloween, and normal teenage pranks here and there, it’s always been pretty safe here.” Darla didn’t want them to think Perkins City had big city problems, because it didn’t.
“We met Max and Sawyer the other day,” Gunner said, his intense stare focused on her.
&
nbsp; “Oh. Well then you know they are nice men and very much in love with Taylor. She loves them just as much.”
“I also introduced Gunner to Tag and Zander. I was happy to see that they hadn’t moved off. We were all friends in high school,” Scope said. “Their wife, Tessa, is cute, but I think she’s had some rough times. You can see it in the way she sizes up everything around her.”
“Yeah. I don’t really know her that well. She’s only lived here for a short time, but she’s always been nice to me and Tommy.” Darla liked the fact that Tessa hadn’t seemed the least bit put off by Tommy not having a dad in his life.
“Okay, guys. Have you decided what you want tonight?” A pretty waitress of about twenty-four or so hooked their attention.
“I think we’ve figured it out,” Scope told her. “One large, thin-crust ‘The Works’ without olives or anchovies. One large cheese on thin crust and one large thin crust with hamburger, extra cheese, sausage, bell peppers and onions. Oh, and add an order of breadsticks.”
Darla would have gaped at the size of the order except that she knew how much men tended to eat. Her son had often surprised her with his hearty appetite over the years. She just smiled and watched as the young woman wrote it all down.
“Sounds good. What about to drink?” she asked.
“Pitcher of beer, whatever is on tap,” Scope said. He looked over at Tommy. “What do you want to drink, buddy?”
Tommy looked over at her with a questioning glance. She just smiled and gave him a nod. His smile grew sunshine bright.
“I’d like a coke, please.”
“Darla? Do you want beer or something else?” Scope asked her next.
“Sweet tea, please. An extra mug though, if you don’t mind. I’ll want a swallow with the first bite of my pizza.”
Scope nodded and smiled up at the waitress. “There you go. Thanks.”
The woman walked off, but neither of the men watched her as she did. That made her smile. Most men wouldn’t have been able to help themselves when a pretty woman with a nice butt walked away like that. She hadn’t flirted with them, but she definitely had the good looks to snag most any man she might have been interested in.
