Ride It Out

by Lowe, Aden

  I start to answer, but Anne squeezes my hand. "Adam, I'm okay. Blake will keep me safe. If he says they won't hurt me, they won't. Now, I'm going outside with him, and I'm going to get to know his friends a little."

  All I can do is stare at her with my mouth hanging open. That strength in her doesn't surprise me in the slightest, but her using it against her precious brother, that shocks me.

  Adam, though, he's gone bright red and shaking. Then he turns to me. "You dirty motherfucker. If one hair on her head is harmed, I will hunt you down and make you wish that drunk driver had better aim." He stalks away, still muttering.

  A tear lingers on Anne's lashes and I swipe it away with my thumb. "Babe, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean for you to find out like this. I didn't expect them to come down yet, but business came up that has to be handled in person." I silently curse the guys for picking tonight to show up and for causing her distress.

  But my Anne, she smiles at me. "Come on, let's go. I think I need to find out how Peanut got his name."

  Laughter pours out. "Babe, you really don't want to know, take my word for it." Those sweet lips tempt me and I lean in for a kiss, cursing the boys yet again. We roll out together and she seems right in her element.

  The guys have already started the fire at the edge of the beach. Jelly comes up as Anne and I roll off the ramp. "Since ol' Hound didn't really introduce us, I'm Jelly. My boy behaving himself?"

  Anne gave him her brilliant smile and glanced at me, that beautiful flush spreading over her cheeks. "He's been very nice."

  Jelly stared for a second then threw his head back and laughed. "Hey, Raiders, Hound's being very nice! You ever think you'd hear something that fucking funny?" The others laughed and agreed, and he turned back to Anne. "You have to understand, he's been one surly fucker since the accident." He slaps my shoulder. "It's good to see the old Hound back."

  Discomfort made me squirm a little. "Enough about me, man. What's going on back home? All the boys doing okay? Jake-Brake's ol' lady have that kid yet?"

  Jelly let me move the conversation into safe territory and filled me on on everything going on back home. Peanut had the grill fired up and someone had made a food and beer run. Looks like the boys made themselves right at home. Bet Adam's even madder than before.

  Like the thought produces him, Adam comes outside, a rolled up blanket under one arm, and a beer in his hand. He tosses the blanket in my direction. "Here, man. It's getting cool. Don't let my baby sis get chilled."

  I grab the blanket out of mid-air. "Thanks. I'll make sure she's taken care of."

  Jelly looks back and forth between Adam and me. "So you're Anne's brother? Good to meet you, man. And don't worry so much. Anything the lady needs, she'll have. Hound's a good guy."

  Adam swallows hard. "Good to know. But if he hurts her, he'll regret it." He stalks off, heading down the beach. I feel just a little sorry for anyone he happens to run into.

  Peanut is busy throwing steaks on the grill and the others have put Anne's back porch to good use as a buffet table, setting up all the other stuff they'd brought. The cooler is full to the brim and everyone is fairly quiet. Just another normal evening with the club.

  And the best part is, my woman is at my side. "You cold, babe? Want the blanket?" I reach over to touch her arm, reassuring myself she isn't chilled.

  She laughs. "No, Blake, I don't need a blankie. I'd rather sit on it than be bundled up in it." The sun is low, ready to dip behind the horizon. The gold tint to the light makes her cheeks glow and her eyes sparkle.

  Suddenly inspired, I turn toward the fire. "Come on." I pick a nice level spot near the fire-pit and unroll the blanket. Spreading it from my chair turns out to be a bit more of a challenge than I expect. "Hey, Leo, give me a hand?" For the first time since I found myself caught in that damn chair, I don't mind asking one of the guys to help a little.

  Leo grins and spreads the blanket on the ground for me. He's been cool the whole time, not pushing my boundaries after I came back from rehab, so he seems pleased to be the one I ask for help.

  "Thanks, man." Anne stops beside me, looking a bit concerned. I shrug. "You said you'd rather sit on it."

  Leo laughs and smacks my head. "Holler if you need anything, man. I'll send somebody over with a couple beers in a minute."

  Shit. Beer. "Hold up, man. Can you ask someone to go down to the condo? There's fruit punch in the fridge. My girl doesn't care for beer."

  He gives me fist bump. "You got it."

  I turn back toward the blanket, surprised to find Anne has already transferred. She's sitting there, all beautiful in the glimmer of the fire, legs tucked under her and that shy smile on her gorgeous lips. She totally slays me.

  The transfer down to the blanket is a little awkward but I manage without embarrassing myself too much. When I'm finally on the ground next to her, all I want is to push her back for a kiss, but with all the guys around, it's probably not the best time to get all hot and bothered. Instead, I content myself with leaning in for a quick, hard kiss. Even with that, we're both breathless when I pull back.

  Fuck, she's about to kill me. If I don't have her soon, I don't know what I'll do. While I'm adjusting my shorts, Jelly strolls up with a couple of plates.

  "Figured I'd bring the food to ya'll since you done got all comfy." He grins and hands us plates brimming with steak, potato salad and some kind of casserole. "Leo said tell you he'll be here with the fruit punch in a minute. Something you need to tell me, Hound?"

  I laugh at his teasing. "I still like beer, man, but fruit punch definitely has a certain appeal."

  He laughs and heads off to talk to some of the others. I catch sight of another fire just up the beach. Looks like someone else is enjoying the evening. From the sound of the music wafting from that direction, it's probably some kids, even though teenagers usually prefer going out to the point for the privacy it offers. I make a mental note to let one of the guys know it's probably all jailbait, best avoided.

  The food is delicious but neither Anne nor I eat much. The boys keep us busy talking, one of them stopping by the blanket every few minutes to say something. Someone takes our plates away, and Leo brings over fresh drinks. Tiny and Lurch come up from somewhere down the beach, carrying something heavy between them. At first I thought it was another cooler, but when they get closer I see they have a huge log hefted awkwardly.

  They bring the log up to the edge of the blanket. "Hey, Hound, thought you might like a backrest." We thank them and Anne blesses them with a broad smile. Lurch gives her his shy grin back and hightails it out of sight. Tiny hangs around a minute, then wonders off to find something more interesting.

  I lean back and pull Anne into my lap, holding her so I can kiss the back of her neck whenever I want. Everything is going great. Everything around us fades away. I will allow nothing to intrude on the peace of sitting there with her cradled in my lap.

  Except rain.

  Cold sprinkles start to fall. I help Anne up and into her chair, then I get in mine. The guys thankfully have finished all the cooking so we’ll just bring it inside Anne’s place.

  “Anne, hurry up inside. I’ll pick up everything, don’t want you getting sick or your chair messing up.”

  “Ok. If you’re sure. See you in a few minutes.”

  Blake:

  Jelly comes over to help me pick up our stuff. “Hound, what are you doing with her? You’re not serious are you?”

  I stop for a minute, despite the rain falling a little harder. “I’m not altogether sure what I’m doing Jelly, but I haven’t been this happy in a very long time, if ever. So, yeah I’m dead serious.”

  "You take care, man. She's not some skank you can toss after you play a little."

  I grin. "That's the last thing I want to do."

  Jelly gives me an odd look and I know why. I'm the one of the bunch who always keeps things light and quick with women. “We’re gonna crash at the condo, you staying here for the night?”

 
I consider that for a minute. “Yeah, I’m going to stay here for the night. Help yourselves to whatever's in the fridge. I’ll be back in the morning to talk more.”

  “Alright, later man. Don’t have too much fun.” He slaps me on the back as he heads down the sidewalk.

  Chapter Eleven: Anne

  I make it back inside just as the rain starts in earnest. I don't like Blake being out there in it, but looks like he's talking with the guy called Jelly and not in any hurry. What an odd name for such a tough looking man. I'll have to ask about that one too. Bet there's an interesting story behind it. And I still have to ask Blake why they call him Hound.

  Adam is watching me, making me a little uncomfy. When he came back from his walk, he stayed inside, and now he looks like he’s thinking hard about something. Not sure what though. I know he's disappointed and hurt that I stood up to him. That's something I've never done before, but this time, I have to think for myself. If I ever want a future beyond living with my parents and being taken care of and just passing time until I die, the time is now.

  “Anne, I’m going to head back home tonight." His voice is serious and low, like he's thinking something other than what he says. "Trav called. He needs some help moving in the morning, finally got his own place." He gives me that solemn look again, like he used to when we were little and someone had hurt my feelings. "You going to be okay if I leave? I’m not sure about Blake and his friends. I know I said I’d cut him some slack, but Anne, those guys… They're the kind you see on the crime report on the evening news after they kidnapped someone for drug money or something."

  I hold up my hand to stop him. "No, they're not. And whatever else they are, they are really nice to me. Jelly fixed my plate, even cut my steak up for me when he saw I was having trouble with it. Tiny and Lurch brought up a log for us to lean against so I wouldn't get too tired. Leo offered his blanket in case I got cold."

  He shook his head. "You don't get it, Anne. They're nice now. But when no one's looking, who knows. Look, just promise me you’ll call no matter what time if you need me, okay? And never do anything you’re not ready for. If he’s worth it and you mean something to him like I’m sure he’s saying, he can wait until you’re ready.”

  My face burns with heat, this is getting silly. My embarrassing moments need to stop already. At least with my brother. “I promise. Try not to worry so much okay, Adam? Go ahead, I’ll be fine. Call me tomorrow.”

  He gives me a hug, and kisses my forehead like always. “Love you Anne.”

  “Love you too. Be careful driving in the rain.”

  As he’s going out the door, Blake comes in. They both stop and stare at each other, not saying a word, but the looks they are giving each other says a whole lot. Sheesh. Boys, I don’t know what to do with them.

  “Adam.”

  “Blake.”

  “Anne, you remember what I said. Love you.” Then he was gone.

  Blake looks at me like he wants to know what Adam meant by that but isn’t going to press the issue. “Babe, do you have a towel I could maybe dry off with a little? That rain came out of nowhere.” He’s soaking wet.

  Maybe I have some old clothes of Adam’s he could change into. “Let me go get you something, hurry up and take off your clothes.”

  “Yes ma’am.”

  Realizing how that sounds, I immediately feel my face heat up. “I just meant, you’re soaking wet, I have some clothes that should fit you.”

  “Whatever you say Anne.” He winks at me.

  Knowing I won’t be able to look at him while he undresses without wanting to watch and touch him, I hurry to get the towel and change of clothes. Takes me more than a few minutes. The dresser in Adam’s old room puts up a struggle, stupid thing is heavy. Finally it opens and I get what I wanted and I roll back to where Blake is waiting for me.

  I stop in my tracks and my mouth falls open. He’s sitting there shirtless, with more muscles on display than I imagined possible on one man. And he's working on removing his pants. Droplets of water from his hair fall to his chest, running down his abs, to…

  “Ohmigosh.” I hope he didn’t hear me just then.

  He's fully exposed now and not at all shy about showing off everything for me to see. He has to have the biggest penis ever. Again, not that I have much to go on, but I’ve accidently seen Adam's and a few of his friends'. Not sure what it is with guys, always showing it off like it’s a prize or something. They walk around like it’s no big deal who sees it. But wow, theirs are nothing compared to Blake’s. It’s huge!

  A cough gets my attention, and I realize he’s caught me staring. My face officially catches fire.

  “Anne, you like what you see?” He smirks at me, waiting for me to respond.

  “Uh, you’re huge!” I squeak out. Slapping my hand over my mouth, I can’t believe I just said that out loud. I turn away from him in embarrassment, ready to roll under the nearest rock.

  He throws his head back in laughter, clearly enjoying this whole situation and my mortification with it. “It gets the job done, never had complaints before. Come over here.”

  Turning slowly, I say. “Uhh, no complaints here, but how does that even fit… you know?” I roll closer despite my need to hide, wanting to touch his chest, and maybe something more, too.

  His smile disappears and he's suddenly very serious. “Oh it’ll fit, don’t worry, Anne.” He reaches for my hand, kisses it, doing something wicked with the tip of his tongue to my palm. He's making me squirm, but curiosity gets the better of me. I need to know if his skin is as warm and smooth as it looks. I move my free hand to touch his shoulder.

  He sucks in a deep breath but doesn't move away, so it must be okay. My fingers slide down over his chest and he drops his head back, breathing hard, but still not moving. He's fascinating, the way he's put together. I trace along his ribs, and then his abs.

  Suddenly, he jerks my hand away. “Anne, it’s been awhile. If you touch me, I can’t promise that I’ll be able to control myself.”

  Feeling brave and maybe a little rebellious, I slowly reach for him. It jerks at my touch. Blake hisses, and groans. I look up at him, his eyes are closed, and he's almost looking like he’s in pain.

  I let go, not wanting to hurt him. "I'm sorry."

  “Anne.” He barely gets my name out. His eyes open, looking intensely at me, like he's fighting an inner war.

  I’m not sure what it's all about, but the moment he decides I know I’m in too deep, and not at all sure I want to get out.

  “Come here, on my lap.” He helps me, unclipping my belt, and lifting me up just a little. He settles my legs to either side of his hips, so I'm facing towards him. I’m able to feel him through my shorts, hot and hard. I wiggle to get closer, needing more. He kisses me with little control, then pulls back. “Anne, which way to your room?”

  “First door on the right.” I’m a little out of breath, the anticipation of what's to come excites me and has me shaking with nerves at the same time.

  Blake:

  The thought of having Anne, being deep inside her, is almost more than I can bear. She's light and fragile in my arms, a faint tremor making her limbs vibrate. I know she's scared, but the way she kisses me back says she's so fucking ready. Needing to get myself back under control before I go off like a teenager, I move Anne slowly onto the bed.

  “Undress for me Anne.” The urge to join her immediately fights my willpower, but I wait with as much patience as I can.

  Painstakingly slow, shy, she starts to remove her shirt, undoing one button at a time, revealing her bra, a creamy lace one. As she slides it off her shoulders, she looks at me with wide eyes. She’s gorgeous.

  Practically panting with need, I encourage her. “Keep going, I want to see all of you Anne.”

  Hesitant, she reaches for her shorts with trembling fingers and pulls them down, along with her panties. Watching her, my cock jerks, needing to get inside her wet heat right away. I close my eyes for a second and drop my
hand to slide up and down a few times.

  This isn't going to be a fast bang. Not with my sweet Anne. She’s going to need some preparation before I can make her mine. She wasn’t too far off with her observation earlier, I am bigger than most. At least that’s what chicks have always said. But who knows. Chicks around the club always say whatever they think will get them what they want.

  Anne is intently looking at my hand, and her cheeks flush with a slight rosy tint. She's curious, watching how I touch myself.

  “Now, lay back, but prop your head up so you can keep your eyes on me." She squirms a little but follows my orders perfectly, which makes me even harder.

  "That’s it. Now, touch yourself, show me what you like, when you’re alone.”

  The look of shock is priceless. Her cheeks become even more flushed and her eyes go very wide. “Uhh. What?” She mumbles, clearly not sure if she heard me correctly.

  “I want to see you touch yourself, show me, let me see you.”

  “I’ve uhh… never done that before.” Her honesty amazes me. It thrills me that I’ll be able to be her first for another thing. She starts to sit up..

  “Don't move. I'll tell you what to do." Fuck, that's even hotter than what I've dreamed of doing. "Take one finger and run it from your chin, down your neck, down your chest, lightly, almost tickling."

  She followed orders again, gasping a little.

  "Now circle your nipple, get it nice and hard for me. Imagine my mouth there." Fuck, this was torture, watching and listening to her. "Cup your breast, hold it, rub it, like you’re massaging it.”

  She slowly moves her hand and starts gently squeezing her breast. A soft moan escapes as she gets lost in the feel of it. Her eyes half close, and her lovely body tenses. Too soon.

  “Keep your eyes on me!” I put some force into the words. Her eyes snap open, watching me as my hand starts to move faster up and down. Her breathing picks up, she’s close and we’re not even close to being done.