by Amanda Heath
“I love you so much, Harley.” He kisses my lips one more time before getting up off of the bed. He is butt-ass naked and I marvel at the fact. He bends over to pick up his boxers and I can’t help but to sigh at his tight perfect butt. The line of his back moves with his muscles as he pulls his boxers on. He turns back to me and I take in the perfect “V” of his hips, his well packed abs, and his somewhat broad shoulders.
His neck is almost graceful as it holds his head upon it. His face is soft in happiness and I feel good about that. His ebony hair is messy, but the sexy kind of messy. His pale blue eyes smile at me and I wonder how I got so lucky.
“I love you too, Spencer.” At first the words sound foreign on my lips, but now they come out so easy. I feel like I should have been saying them for forever. He looks even happier after I say it. Then, his face changes; he looks like he just remembered something and it causes hurt and anger to roll over his soft features.
“Let’s get up and get dressed. I have to explain to Mom where your dad is.” My stomach drops at having to tell Polly. She doesn’t deserve to have to go through this. It doesn’t seem fair. I nod before getting up to get dressed.
*****
I don’t make it to the conversation with Polly, seeing as Carter has decided to show up on my door step. She is really late if she is trying to be a good friend. I kind of needed her two months ago.
“Spencer, just go on without me, this might take a while.” He had walked up behind me when I opened the door. He kisses my neck, which is exposed because of my ponytail.
“Don’t kill her, baby girl,” he whispers for my ears only. I look back at him and nod. I also watch him walk away. What? The boy has a nice ass.
I open the door all the way for Carter to come inside. She has had a disgusted look on her face since she saw Spencer kiss my neck. She can be disgusted all she wants. At least Spencer isn’t an alcoholic, druggie, groupie fucking rock star.
She walks over to the couch and makes herself at home. She acts like she is fucking mad at me! She better hope she chooses her words wisely. At this point, she can go to hell.
“What are you doing here, Carter?” I ask, walking toward the other side of the couch.
“Why are you still with that cheating dirt bag?” She asks with a sneer. I roll my eyes at that and decide to sit down. It really doesn’t look like I will be getting rid of her anytime soon. “Well, for starters, Spencer has been there for me throughout this whole thing. He might have screwed up, but he made up for it. I know he is sorry and that’s all I can ask for.” I shrug my shoulders. There is no way she will be able to understand.
“Well it’s your choice, I guess. But don’t say I didn’t warn you when he does it again.” She gives me a pointed look. I give her one right back.
“First off, Spencer isn’t going to be doing it again. Unforeseen circumstances caused him to cheat in the first place. It’s not in his nature to cheat repeatedly. Secondly, he feels true remorse for it and that’s more than I can say about most guys who cheat.” You can even think what you want about him, but I truly believe that he won’t ever do it again.
“You’re stupid if you believe that.” She crosses her arms over her chest. Carter always seems to think that we should do whatever she wants us to do. I’m honestly sick of it. I’m also sick of her being in my house judging me for a situation she isn’t even in.
“Okay. I’m going to say my peace and then you are going to get the fuck out.” I blow out my breath and uncross my legs. “I’m so fucking tired of picking you up off the goddamn floor every time something happens to you! I did it because we were friends and that is what friends do. But where the fuck were you when I was dying inside because of what happened to me? Do you know who picked me up off the floor? Me. I did it, without your help.
I have barely heard from you the past two months. Now that some real drama and gossip is going on with my family you show up trying to stick your big nose in the middle of it. I’m not going to have it.
You’re the worst friend that anyone could have. You deserve whatever comes to you from now on. You delete my fucking number and you forget where I live. I never want to see your white trash ass again.” She has this deer-in-headlights look on her face, like she can’t believe that I told her off. It was a long time coming. I’m tired of being in a one-sided friendship. “GET OUT!” I yell at the top of my lungs to get her moving.
She doesn’t say anything to me as she gets up off the couch and slams the door on her way out.
Spencer
I find Mom in the kitchen making coffee. She turns to me when I walk in and she smiles. When she sees my face though, that smile vanishes. I’m going to have to hurt my mom and I wish like hell I could find some way out of it.
“Hey, Mom, why don’t you sit down? We have some things to talk about.” She nods her head and I see one of her hands shaking. She takes a seat at the table and I sit in front of her. “Richard got arrested last night.”
She sighs out loud like she was expecting this kind of thing. “What did he do?” She looks hopeful that it’s not too bad, but little does she know..
I take a deep breath before explaining things to her. “Well, he showed up at the mud party last night with a shotgun and put it to my head.” She gasps at that and goes sheet white. “Then, he confessed to murdering his wife and Mason’s father. They were having an affair, and Mrs. Maxton was scared to leave him. Harley isn’t Richard’s daughter. I guess Mrs. Maxton finally got the nerve to leave him and that’s when he killed both of them. Dean’s cousin is a cop. He was off duty last night and recorded the whole thing. They came and arrested him after that.”
She doesn’t say anything for a while. I guess it’s the shock of it all. I don’t think anyone saw it in him. He was one of those guys who would give you the shirt off his back. No one knew what he was holding under the surface. “I really know how to pick them, don’t I, baby?” Tears start falling out of her eyes and my heart lurches at the sight.
I haven’t seen my mom cry in years.
“Don’t say that, Mom. These men pick you. You just don’t have the heart to turn them down.” I get up off the chair I am in and cross over to hers. I bend down in front of her and put my arms around her shaking shoulders. “It will be okay, Mom,” I whisper into her hair.
“I knew something was off with him, I just refused to overlook it. I just wanted one man to be perfect for me. Instead I get stuck with rapists and murders.” She is sobbing so hard and all I want to do is take this pain for her.
“What was off about him?” I ask softly.
It takes her a minute to answer. “He was okay at first. Then when we moved in here, he started being really controlling. He even accused me of cheating one day after I got home from work. I was tired that day and didn’t want to deal with it. I honestly didn’t ever want to deal with it.”
We stay in the kitchen for a long time just holding each other. I let her cry out her disappointment and sadness for as long as she needs.
After a while, she calms down and pulls out of my arms. She pats me on my shoulder before saying, “I think that I am just going to go lay down for a while, if you don’t mind.” I nod my head in answer and let her go.
Harley comes in a little bit later and finds me still on the floor in front of where my mom was sitting. She sinks down behind me and wraps her arms around my waist. After a moment, I feel her silent tears soaking the back of my shirt. I turn around and scoop her up in my arms and sit us down in front of the island. I hold her in my lap and let her cry it out. I’m guessing it’s a mixture of things that have her upset: The rape, me cheating, her family’s mistakes, and the loss of Carter.
It doesn’t bother me one bit. I could sit here the rest of my life with her in my arms. It’s where she needs to be. It’s where she belongs.
A few hours after Mom and Harley’s tears dry, Harley’s brothers, Benton and Dakota, show up. I guess Harley had called them when Mom and I were talking. Harley h
ides in my lap as I tell the guys what happened. They wear matching shocked looks on their faces. None of us really know what to do after that.
They quietly excuse themselves to grieve on their own.
“You want to go take a nap, baby girl?” I ask her softly. All I get is a nod, but that works for me. I pick her up as I stand and carry her to my room. I lay her on the bed first before I take off my shirt and lay down beside her. I start to pull her into my side but she is already reaching for me. We lay curled together until we both fall asleep.
*****
My phone is ringing in my pocket but I’m too fuzzy from my nap to answer it before it stops ringing. I sigh and fish it out. It starts going off again before I even get it into my hand. The screen flashes Mason’s name. “Yeah?” I say after I hit the answer button.
“Come answer the door. I want to talk to Harley,” he huffs into the phone. Well, what the hell is he calling me for. “I’ve been calling Harley’s phone all day with no answer. I got tired of that and called you.”
“Hold on, I’ll ask her if she wants to talk,” he says something as I lay the phone down to wake Harley up.
“Who is it?” She asks before I can even say anything. I look down at her and her dark blue eyes are already open and staring at me.
“Mason. He wants to talk to you. Apparently he is at the front door.” I run my fingers through her hair as I wait for her to answer.
“Yeah, I’ll talk to him.” She kisses my lips before getting up off the bed to let Mason in.
Chapter 26
Harley
Why am I nervous? I’ve been around the guy for two whole months. I know him already. I don’t know, I guess it’s the fact I found out he is my brother still has me pretty freaked out. I went from having only two brothers to having three in just one night.
His dark brown hair and gauges appear through the window on the front door. What the hell am I so nervous about? I open the door slowly, willing myself to get over the nerves. “Hey...” I trail off.
“Hey. Can I come in?” I nod my head and open the door wider for him. He is wearing a white tee shirt and black pants. He is also holding a little box that has “Catherine” written on the top.
“Is that for me?” I blurt out. Oh, that was just dumb. It has my name on it, so of course it is for me. “Yeah, my mom found it in my dad’s things after he died. She asked me to give it to you. I have no idea what is in it.” He shrugs his shoulders and hands over the box.
I walk over to the couch where my friendship with Carter ended. That seems like a lifetime ago. I sit down and put the box in my lap. I’m curious about what could be in it, but I’m also not ready to find out.
Spencer walks into the room at that moment. It’s like I conjured him with my thoughts. He comes over to the couch and sits next to me. He looks at the box and then up to my eyes. “You going to open it, baby girl?”
I nod and take a deep breath before popping the lid. Inside, there are old pictures and a familiar looking doll. “Miss Betty!” I exclaim when I realize where I know the doll from. I look up at Mason before I say anything else. “I used to play with this at your house. I remember that now. When you said that we used to play together, I had no idea what you were talking about. I do now. I was so upset when I left this at your house. Mom said we couldn’t go back and get it. That was a few days before she...died.”
“Yeah, you wouldn’t go anywhere without her. I was having a bad day the last time I saw you. You left her with me so that I would feel better. I felt so horrible when dad died and my mom told me I wouldn’t ever see you again.” Mason’s eyes are a little watery. It’s a strange thing to see on him.
“Well, you got her back to me. That is all that matters.” I reach into the box for the pictures and I let out a gasp when I see my mother’s face. She is sitting in the picture with a man who looks almost exactly like Mason. “You look so much like him. It’s crazy.”
“Mom says I’m a spitting image.” He looks down at his phone before standing up. “I have to be somewhere. I just wanted to leave the box with you. I also wanted to tell you that, Dylan was caught attempting to rape another girl a couple towns over. He’s not going to be able to make bail this time.”
“What?” Spencer and I exclaim at the same time. Mason nods his head. “The girl has a boyfriend who got worried when she didn’t come back from the bathroom. Found her knocked out in a backroom and him trying to rape her. There’s no way he will get out this time. They know he is a danger to society.” He shrugs his shoulders like this should be a well-known fact, which it should.
“Are you sure you have to leave?” I ask, hopeful. I want him to be around. He is my brother I never knew I had.
“Yeah, I really do. But don’t worry, I’ll be around.” He gives me a small smile before shoving his hands in his pockets. He then turns around and heads out the front door.
“I can’t believe that you are related to him. You are like polar opposites.” He wiggles his eyebrows to let me know that he is kidding. I smack him playfully on the shoulder before we settle back into the couch and look at the pictures.
*****
“Do you think that she will be okay?” I ask Spencer later when we are laying in his bed watching TV.
“Who, Mom?” I nod my head to answer. “Yeah, she will be. She was right though, she has a way of picking out men. I think the only normal guy she ever dated was Mike.”
I laugh softly at his explanation. “That’s good. He never married, you know. We should get them back together.” I wiggle my eyebrows.
He chuckles and shakes his head. “What about your brothers?” He has a serious expression on his face, which is a striking difference from the laugh he just let out.
“What about them?” I really don’t know. If you haven’t noticed, I’m not all that close to them. Sure they are protective of me, but that is about it. They don’t seem to want to have much to do with me.
“You think they are going to fight for your dad?” He places his hand in my hair and starts running his fingers through the straight locks.
“Yes. They weren’t there. They didn’t listen to what he said. It won’t seem real to them unless they hear the tape.” I sigh and snuggle closer to his chest. “I don’t blame them, though. I wouldn’t believe it unless I heard it myself.”
“Yeah, me too. You think you will ever make up with Carter?” I look up at his perfect face and smile at the way he even cares to ask me these questions.
“I hope not. That bitch can go to hell. I spent the better part of my life making her feel better about herself. The second I need her for anything, where is she? Nowhere to be found. That’s not friendship. It’s a freaking babysitting job.” We both chuckle at that. “When do you go back to school?” I start to freak out on the inside, thinking of him leaving me. I know that he needs to finish school instead of sitting around here taking care of me.”
“Umm...I don’t.” I blink up at him and wait for him to go on. “I’m going to go online. Got it all set up, actually. I can’t leave my mom right now. It just wouldn’t be right. She will need to find somewhere to live and all that jazz.”
“She can stay with me. My brothers don’t want to live here. I don’t think I will have to fight them for it. If they do, I can play the sweet, innocent little sister card.” I smirk at that and Spencer just rolls his eyes.
“I’m happy you are staying, though. If it’s not for me.”
He laughs hard at that. “I’m staying here for you, mostly. I just didn’t want you to think I stayed just because of you. I just got you back to where I want you, didn’t want you to run screaming to the hills.
“I wouldn’t have done that!” He gives me a pointed look. “Okay...maybe I would have. We will never know now.” I smile really big and give him a peck on the lips.
I get up off the bed and start walking for the door. “Where you going, baby girl?” He leans up on his elbows, watching my ass as I take steps.
“To
go get registered for online classes. I want to get a degree too, you know.” I get to the door and open it. Before I walk out I say, “You can’t have all the fun. Though I think we will get tired of each other in about five seconds.”
“I could never get tired of you, baby girl. You’re my everything.” I don’t think he has any idea what he just did to my heart.
“That’s good to know. I guess I kind of like you.” He scowls at me and gets up off the bed.
When he gets to me, he wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me into his chest. “Kind of?” He lowers his mouth almost to mine, but doesn’t kiss me. He then goes for my neck, but doesn’t touch any of my skin with his lips. No, he just blows warm air on my skin. It’s kind of erotic.
I keep waiting for him to actually kiss me...somewhere, though he looks like he is just out to torture me. “Fine, I fucking love you, Spencer Grady!”
He chuckles and finally kisses and nibbles my neck before moving up my jaw line. When he gets to my lips he hoovers over them and whispers, “I love you, Harley Maxton, and I always will.” Then his lips finally meet mine and I feel like I am exactly where I am meant to be.
The End
Amanda Heath lives in southern Arkansas with her husband and young author. She is also the author of This Beautiful Thing.
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