Dog Days of Summer

by Fiala, PJ

  “I think that sounds great. I’ll go, Mom. Why don’t you unpack—again.” Gunnar smirked.

  “What does that mean, ‘again’?” LuAnn sniped, using air quotes.

  Gunnar turned so he was facing LuAnn head on, “It means that my mom just moved in with Dog and she’s been unpacking the last couple of days.” He smiled at the look on LuAnn’s face.

  LuAnn’s eyes narrowed as she looked past Gunnar right at Joci.

  Chase burst out laughing. “Careful, LuAnn, your face will stay that way.”

  Jeremiah pulled Joci to the master bedroom while Gunnar and Ryder took drink orders and headed to the nearest store.

  As they walked into the master bedroom, Jeremiah hugged Joci and picked her up and laid her on the bed. He stretched out next to her and kissed her.

  “I thought I was going to go out of my mind when those assholes got so close to you, Joci. I couldn’t stand it if anything happened to you.”

  Joci wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him to her for a kiss. They lay there hugging and kissing for long moments.

  “I’m fine, babe. Thank you for worrying.”

  Jeremiah’s smile grew across his face.

  “You called me ‘babe.’ That’s the first time you used an endearment for me. I love the way it sounds coming from your lips. Let’s make out.”

  Joci laughed, but they heard Gunnar and Ryder coming back into the house. “Okay, we’ll finish this later. Now, think about that for the rest of the night.” Jeremiah whispered in her ear.

  The boys came in and were carrying their packages and putting beer and wine coolers in the refrigerator as Joci and Jeremiah walked into the kitchen.

  Deacon’s wife, Julie, and Janice started mixing drinks and playing bartender. The kitchen had a breakfast bar and they used that as a bar. As soon as everyone had drinks, JT proposed a toast to a great weekend. Everyone cheered and sipped at their drinks. The boys had also bought snacks and dips, and those were spread out on the kitchen table.

  Joci began talking to some of the girls and trying to get to know them. Julie was an artist with a vividly creative mind. Janice was very sweet and closer to Joci in age. Joci knew her already, but they hadn’t had the time to really get to know each other.

  Jeremiah sat on the sofa and patted his knee for Joci to come and sit on his lap. Suddenly, LuAnn jumped in and sat on his lap first. She wrapped her arms around his neck and tried to kiss him, but he pulled his head back as soon as he saw what was happening.

  With his jaw tight he said, “Get the fuck off my lap, LuAnn.”

  She acted pouty and said, “Dog, you know you want me.”

  Jeremiah put his hands on her hips and picked her off his lap. When she was standing, he gave her a little shove.

  “I’ve told you this is inappropriate. Enough.”

  Jeremiah stood up quickly and walked over to Joci and grabbed her hand and pulled her out on the deck. Once they were out there, Jeremiah turned to her and framed her face with his hands, holding her in place.

  “I love you, Joci. I did have a talk with her. I swear it.”

  “I believe you, baby.” Joci sighed heavily and wrapped her arms around Jeremiah.

  “You don’t sound sure.”

  Jeremiah pulled away and looked at Joci. Joci closed her eyes and sighed again.

  “I just hate having to deal with her every time we do something with your employees. How much temptation can you handle?”

  “She’s not a temptation to me. I could give a shit. You’re the only woman I want. You’re the only woman I will ever love. Ever.”

  Just then, the door opened up and JT, Ryder, and Gunnar walked out onto the deck.

  “Everything okay out here?”

  Joci and Jeremiah smiled at them.

  “Yes, everything is fine. How about in there?” Joci said with a smile.

  Gunnar was the first to make a comment. “I would like to wrap my hands around her throat. She is such a piece of trash, and I hate how awful she is to you. When Chase said she wasn’t riding with him, I had hoped she wasn’t coming at all. Then she showed up with Boyd, a guy she met in a bar last night.”

  Joci looked at Gunnar and then JT and Ryder. “I’m okay. I don’t like it either, but it is what it is at this point, so we have to suck it up and deal with it. Only Jeremiah can change the situation.”

  That hit Jeremiah hard. Talk about being sucker-punched. But, she was right. He just felt like he owed it to Lance to make sure LuAnn had a job. Never in his life did he think he would find a woman like Joci and have a woman like LuAnn try to fuck it up for him. He would never try to harm another person’s relationship, ever. It was beyond him that someone would do this to him.

  “I’ll take care of it. Right now, let’s try to enjoy the weekend and not let one person ruin it. If we all stick together, we can have a great time,” Jeremiah said.

  JT nodded. “How about we talk about the house then?”

  He was smiling. He looked at Gunnar and Gunnar was smiling as well.

  “We’re excited to move in. Now that I know the house is available, I can hardly stand to stay in my shitty apartment,” Gunnar stated.

  Joci said, “Jeremiah and I finished moving today. I’ll go over next week and clean so it’s ready for you guys. You can move in any time after that. If you don’t want the furniture I left there, we can get a storage unit and move it there.”

  JT let out a whoop, then high-fived Gunnar. People started filtering out on the deck to see what was going on. Gunnar and JT told them they were moving into Joci’s house next week, and they were excited. They were talking excitedly when LuAnn had to get her two cents worth in.

  “Can’t you afford to live on your own anymore, Joci?”

  Joci looked at LuAnn and took a deep breath. “I certainly can. After all, I have a house that I bought on my own. What do you have?”

  LuAnn lived with her sister in her sister’s basement. With that, she turned and walked back into the house to make herself another drink. JT smirked and high-fived Joci, and Gunnar kissed his mom on the cheek.

  Conversation resumed and the mood was lifted. Jeremiah and Joci were okay. The remainder of the evening, everyone had a great time. LuAnn was quiet and drank heavily, to the point that Boyd had to carry her to bed around ten o’clock.

  Joci greatly enjoyed herself and so did Jeremiah. Later in the evening, Jeremiah sat in a big brown leather chair and winked at Joci and patted his lap, knowing the little joke was not lost on her. She gladly climbed on his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck. She leaned in to him and whispered in his ear.

  “Dog, you know you want me.”

  Jeremiah squeezed her tight and kissed her on the lips. “You’re right about that. More than I can get my mind around.”

  Chapter 19

  Last Chance

  On Saturday morning, Joci woke up to Jeremiah sliding into her. She was lying on her back, with her arms over her head. She felt him push himself into her and she moaned. He kissed her neck and nibbled her earlobe.

  He swirled his tongue around the shell of her ear and whispered, “Good morning, gorgeous. I love waking up with you.”

  Joci wrapped her arms around Jeremiah’s neck and kissed his jaw.

  She nibbled her way to his ear and whispered, “I love waking up with you in me.”

  Jeremiah hissed out a breath, “God, Joci, you could make me come just by talking to me.”

  She moaned at the feeling once he was completely inside of her. As he started moving, she made little sounds that drove him absolutely wild.

  “Hmm, you feel like heaven inside of me.”

  Jeremiah loved making love to her, with her. He loved that she had moved in with him. He loved how he felt about her.

  “Joci…get there, baby…fast.”

  Joci smiled. He was riding her hard and fast, the way she liked it. He was massaging her inside, filling and stretching her completely. It never took him long to bring her to orgasm. He
ground his hips against her a few times and she felt her orgasm growing fast and furious. Her body was heated, starting at her feet and moving up. Her nipples were hard little peaks. Her breathing was ragged as she tightened her arms around him. Her vision grew blurry and she knew she was close, so close.

  “Jeremiah…I love you.”

  She stiffened when her orgasm hit her. She sighed as she came. He pumped one more time and floated over the edge with her. They lay there for a while, floating off to sleep again, wrapped in each other, still joined at their most intimate parts.

  When Jeremiah woke up about a half hour later, he kissed Joci on the neck and nibbled her shoulder. He breathed in deep.

  “I love the way you smell after we’ve made love. I love the way you feel. I love you.”

  Joci smiled. She wrapped her arms around him tighter and kissed his neck.

  He pulled out of her and went into the bathroom to get a wet cloth to clean them up.”I think someone’s up. I can smell coffee. Do you want some?”

  “Yes, I’ll get up with you. We can sit out there and talk to whoever is up.”

  She got up and threw on some yoga pants and a bra and t-shirt while Jeremiah pulled on his jeans and a t-shirt. They walked into the kitchen together, holding hands. Bear and Ashley were sitting at the table talking and drinking coffee. Joci went to the coffee pot, got two cups from the cupboard, and poured them coffee. She turned with the pot in her hand and motioned to Bear and Ashley. They both shook their heads no. Joci replaced the coffee pot and sat next to Jeremiah at the table.

  “Dog, we’ve been looking at the map, and here’s a nice route we can take today.” Bear motioned on the map in front of him.

  “Looks great. Why don’t you lead today? I’m fine with anywhere we ride today. The weather looks good. Go for it.”

  Bear’s broad grin grew. “Thanks, Dog.”

  Deacon and Julie came in, and so did Janice, Angel, and Ray. “Guys, check this out.” Bear pointed to the map.

  “Looks like a great route, Bear,” Deacon said.

  As they were sitting with their coffee, Jeremiah said, “Is there a little town where we can eat along the way, Bear? That way no one has to cook or clean.”

  They all bowed their heads over the map on the table and Bear pointed to a little town. An agreement was made to be ready in an hour.

  LuAnn had made an appearance while Jeremiah and Joci showered, and Gunnar told her to get herself ready to go; they weren’t waiting. LuAnn made a snide remark and flipped him off, which caused Chase to tell her to shove that finger up her ass and get moving.

  Gunnar had told Joci that LuAnn had slept with Chase on many occasions, usually because she knew he was the only one who would let her ride on his bike when she had no one else. “Ass for Gas” was the saying. Joci thought that was pretty crude, but when it came to LuAnn, she wasn’t at all surprised that was her lifestyle.

  They were saddling up when LuAnn, in very few clothes, made her appearance and climbed on the back of Boyd’s bike. As they took off, Jeremiah nodded to Joci to go ahead of him, and he pulled out right behind her. After they ate, they would gas up and then head north a little for the day.

  They rode to a little town just outside of Wisconsin Rapids for breakfast. Jeremiah sat at one end of the long table, and Bear sat at the other. Everyone else filled in where they wanted. Joci sat to Jeremiah’s left, and JT sat to his right. Boyd and LuAnn sat down toward the other end of the table on the same side as Joci, which meant, she didn’t have to look at LuAnn. Perfect, as far as Joci was concerned.

  Jeremiah and Joci held hands while they waited for their food. Every once in a while, Jeremiah would kiss Joci’s fingers or her knuckles or the back of her hand. He was very affectionate. Gunnar sat next to Joci at their end of the table, and Ryder sat next to JT. The conversation flowed. Once in a while, someone at the other end of the table would interject, or ask Jeremiah or someone else a question, but for the most part, they just talked to each other.

  As soon as they had finished eating, they rode next door to a gas station to gas up before heading off on Bear’s route. After gassing up, Jeremiah and Joci rode to the edge of the parking lot and waited for everyone else. Jeremiah grabbed Joci and hugged her tight. “It’s going to be a great day, babe.”

  Joci laughed, “I think so, too.”

  “Okay, saddle up.” Jeremiah swatted Joci’s butt and swung his leg over his bike, winking at her as he started his bike. Joci smiled and shook her head as she swung her leg over her own bike and started it up. The group started pulling out of the gas station. Jeremiah took off, thinking Joci was with him. Just as Joci started pulling out, Boyd cut her off and drove in front of her, with LuAnn giving Joci the finger and laughing.

  Joci’s heart thudded in her chest. She could have dumped her bike there. What the fuck is going on with those two?

  They got out on the road and Jeremiah looked back to make sure Joci was okay. She gave him the thumbs up and he nodded at her, but she could tell he was pissed. She was pissed, too, and it left Joci at the back of the group again, which Jeremiah had specifically told everyone not to do.

  Jeremiah slowed down until he was alongside Joci in the inside lane. They were on a two-lane road, but there wasn’t any traffic at this time of day, still early Saturday morning. Jeremiah nodded his head to Joci to follow him and he took off, passing Boyd, Frog, and Janice, and then Gunnar and Ryder. Joci looked up the road and still saw no traffic, so she followed Jeremiah. Gunnar and Ryder slowed down to give them room to come into the lane. They safely slid into the formation in front of Gunnar and Ryder. Joci gave them the thumbs-up as she moved in front of them.

  The roads were curvy, and the weather was warming up. It was beautiful riding weather. The sun started warming the day, traffic was still light. It was late June and the temperature today was supposed to be in the low 90s, perfect for Joci.

  About an hour and a half into their ride, they were looking for a gas station to gas up again. Bear found one on the outskirts of a little town near Tomah. Everyone pulled in, but there were only two pumps, which meant most of them had to wait for others to finish up. Joci got off her bike and so did Jeremiah. Boyd, LuAnn, Gunnar, JT, Ryder, Deacon, Julie, and Janice all got off their bikes, too. Jeremiah walked over to Joci and hugged her.

  “Are you okay, baby?”

  Joci smiled, “Yes, I’m fine. But, what the fuck?”

  “Exactly. I’ve had enough.” Jeremiah stalked over to Boyd and before even stopping in front of him, he punched him in the mouth. Boyd went down hard. LuAnn screamed, and everyone started walking over to see what was going on.

  Jeremiah stood over Boyd and glared at him. “I told you, Joci was not to be left at the back of the group. Not only that, but you cut her off. She could have dumped her bike, you ignorant fuck. Get the fuck out of here. You’re not welcome.”

  “Fuck, man, I didn’t know it meant today, too. LuAnn said it didn’t matter.”

  “It does matter. It matters a hell of a lot. When I give an order, I expect it to be followed. Even if that hadn’t been an order, you never, ever, cut anyone in my group off. Get out.”

  LuAnn stood with her hands on her hips. “Dog, that’s bullshit. Joci shouldn’t be riding if she can’t handle it.”

  Jeremiah glared at LuAnn. “Since you don’t fucking ride yourself, you shouldn’t open your fucking mouth. Get the fuck out of here, both of you. Now!”

  Boyd got up off the ground and walked over to his bike, rubbing his jaw. He nodded for LuAnn to get on, but she stood with her arms crossed.

  “Get out, LuAnn, you have no one else to ride with, and you’re not welcome anymore.”

  LuAnn started with the waterworks. “Dog, please let me stay. I can ride with Chase.”

  Chase spoke up then, “No, you can’t, LuAnn. I asked you last week and you said no. Now I don’t want you on with me.”

  LuAnn walked over to Boyd’s bike with tears in her eyes. She looked back at Jeremiah. �
�I don’t have a key to get my stuff.”

  Jeremiah shook his head, “Someone will bring it back to the shop. You’re not welcome at the house. Especially when there isn’t anyone there to watch you.”

  Jeremiah turned his back on LuAnn and walked toward Joci, hugging her to him. He was shaking and breathing hard. Joci wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tight. “Thank you for sticking up for me.”

  Jeremiah looked down at Joci and slowly shook his head. “I’ll always stick up for you, don’t you understand?”

  Chapter 20

  Tonight We Play

  LuAnn and Boyd took off and the rest of the group continued gassing up and talking. The rest of the day went along smoothly. The ride was very nice, and the weather was nicer. Jeremiah looked over at Joci riding, and his heart swelled. She was amazing. Most women would have freaked out yesterday when those assholes got so close to her, but she kept her cool and knew what to do when he pulled over. She was a great rider. Today was the same. Boyd had cut her off, and she hadn’t bitched or made a scene. She just fell in line where she could and rode along.

  She looked fantastic on her bike, too. She rode a Harley Davidson Fat Boy. She had it custom painted, pearl white with gold ghost flames. She sat with a small lean forward, looking as sexy as hell. He couldn’t blame the guys for admiring her yesterday. Jeremiah had a hard time taking his eyes off her. God, he was a lucky man.

  Joci looked over and saw Jeremiah watching her. She smiled at him, and his heart skipped a beat. She winked and looked back at the road. This was without a doubt the woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.

  Joci was enjoying herself immensely. The day was fantastic, and not having LuAnn around was making it even more so. She felt free of a heavy weight. You could tell it in everyone else as well. The mood seemed lighter and happier. Even Chase had perked up a bit.

  They pulled in the driveway at the house around 5:45, and everyone rolled the bikes into the garage.

  Joci got off her bike and said, “If someone wants to go to the store and pick up some chicken and potatoes, I’ll be happy to cook.”