by Mae Martini
He chuckled. “Not at all. How are you feeling? I saw that flinch.”
“Better.” She smiled and walked over to him as she lifted the shirt and flung it to the floor and wrapped her arms around his waist. “Your eye is still swollen.”
He took in a large breath. “Yeah, it’s throbbing, too.”
“Oh, yeah? Anything else throbbing?” She asked as she began to undo his belt buckle.
He let out a short boisterous laugh. “Like you wouldn’t believe.” He grabbed her hands. “G, we can’t. The doctor said not to put too much strain on your ribs and I’m sure you’ll spasm when you come, and hurt yourself.”
“You know me so well, huh? I’ll take some pain killers. I won’t feel it.” She brought her hands back to his belt buckle.
“Hahaha, Uh-uh. That will only mask your pain. You need to heal.” Again he removed her hands.
She pouted. “Well, then let me do you.”
He grinned that charming grin. “As much as I’d like you to do me, I’m gonna wait for you. G, just give it a few days. It’s for your own good.”
She sighed. “All right. You win…. Kiss me?”
“Now that I can and will do.”
She lifted her lips up to his and because he had a bruise on his jaw, she kissed him lightly.
But, Jake got carried away and deepened the kiss as he put his hands on her ass and squeezed her to him.
She broke the kiss and let out a gasp.
Jake immediately dropped his hands and backed up. He scanned her body, his eyes landing on the bruise at her ribs. Between that bruise and the one on her cheek, he inwardly sighed. Signs of his failure. “Come on, woman, let’s get you back to bed.” He walked her over to it and helped her into it. After he tucked her in under the sheet, he went to the mini fridge and pulled out a cold bottle of water and came back and gave her a pain killer, and the water to wash it down. He climbed into bed, above the sheet, and put his arm around her head.
“Tell me about Dan.” He asked her.
“Dan, the guy who helped us last night?”
“Yeah.”
She repeated the account all the way up to the moment she was on the receiving end of a punch by Doug. “…At that point, this guy puts his hand on Doug’s shoulder and turns him around and just started punching him. When Logan and Richie put you in the car, he came over to me, and he took off his shirt and handed it to me. He said to use it to press against your head wound. Jake, you were bleeding so much. I was so scared.” She paused.
He didn’t press her, he knew she’d continue. He did glide his hand up and down her arm.
“I thanked him, then asked him who he was. He said he was an old friend of yours and started to walk away. I put my hand on his arm to stop him and he turned to me. I asked him his name and he said, Dan, then he walked away.”
Jake still did not say anything, he just nodded his head.
“Is he a friend, Jake?”
“Gia, I told you that Cord and Rory have been my friends since first grade, right?”
“Yes.”
“Well, up until almost two years ago, there were four of us. Dan was the fourth. One night when he was drunk, he violated Annie, and Cord went crazy. He and I went to his house and Cord beat the shit out of him. We haven’t spoken to him since then. Rory says hi when he sees him, but he doesn’t hang with him anymore. Oh, and Annie doesn’t know Cord beat the shit out of him, so please don’t say anything.”
“I won’t”
They both grew quiet and soon after, Jake heard her breathe evenly. She had fallen asleep. He lay there a while longer, trying to relax, but as soon as he would start to relax, he would think about how he had failed her. He wanted to talk to her about it but found it hard to bring it up, and now that she was asleep, he got a temporary reprieve.
He went to his office, sat at his desk and went over the bills, even paying a few of them online. He checked that his family’s old ranch was still for sale and noticed the price came down. He would inquire on Monday. He read some emails and checked the guest register. He and Annie were doing something right; they were booked for the next month.
With nothing else to do, he looked toward the door. On the other side was the one woman who got his heart beating. He had fallen in love with her at first sight. She was the one he wanted in his bed every night. He’d even pictured her pregnant with their children and living on the ranch that he grew up on.
But then thoughts of the night before entered his mind and he felt like a failure. He sighed and got up from his desk. He strode over to pick up his guitar and sat down on the couch along the wall. Absently, he strummed, and softly, he began to sing “Wisemen say...”
Gia woke up and reached out for Jake. When she realized he wasn’t there she lay back and sighed. She knew he was being aloof. She just didn’t know why. Upon hearing music coming from his office, Gia rose up out of bed, searching for the T-shirt she flung off. When she went to bend down and pick it up, pain shot through her. She straightened up and slowly squatted to pick up the shirt, and padded over to the door and gingerly opened it to watch Jake.
“…the sea, darling.” He looked up to see Gia by the doorway. He quickly and without missing a beat changed up the rhythm and sang ‘You Gonna Fly’ by Keith Urban.
She walked over to him and sat down. After the song, he put his arm around her and gently brought her close to him.
“That was beautiful, Jake. You have a beautiful voice.”
“Thank you.” He kissed the top of her head and sighed.
They sat in silence and Gia noted he was being too quiet. She couldn’t take it anymore. “What’s wrong?” She asked softly.
“Nothing,” he was quick to say. Then he inhaled and let out a long, slow breath. “I feel so… emasculated right now… I let you down. I let you down and you were hurt. I couldn’t do a thing to stop it. Oh fuck. I let you down.” He cringed as he threw his head back.
Gia squeezed him to her. It hurt her ribs, but she paid no mind. “Jake, you were jumped. What else could you do? I probably shouldn’t have gotten in the way. I didn’t think. I’m sorry.”
“I’m supposed to protect you. Make sure no one touches you. Ah, shit. Every time I play it in my mind, I feel less of a man.” He let out another breath.
“Jake, stop. Don’t do this. You were ambushed. I don’t doubt for a moment you can keep me safe. I feel so protective when I’m with you and even when we’re apart. Knowing you’re my man, knowing you look out for me, well, that’s enough to make me feel protected.” She moved out from under his arm and straddled his lap. She placed her hands around his neck, and leaned in and kissed him. She felt his hands on her waist and noted how gentle they were.
He was an amazing kisser, but this kiss was different. It was deep and soulful. It took her breath away. When he broke the kiss, he kept his lips by hers. I love you. He couldn’t bring himself to say those words out loud. He felt he wasn’t worthy after letting her down.
Jake dropped his lips to her neck and sucked and licked, taking pleasure in her taste and scent. His hand traveled from her waist to her breast and he gently massaged it. He felt her nipple grow hard, and he squeezed it.
She sucked in a breath, feeling the familiar tingle travel down to her core. She felt his cock grow and ground her body on it.
Jake moved his hands to his jeans and was taking down the zipper when she let out a gasp of pain. It brought him back to reality.
He picked his head up from her neck. “No, G. You’re not strong enough, baby.” He placed his hands back at her waist and stopped her from moving, but she was in so much pain that she nodded her head in agreement.
He wanted to pick her up but was mindful of her bruise so he rose up with her on his lap and she slowly dropped her feet to the floor. They walked back to the bed with his arm around her shoulder. He put her to bed, then took a run to Wong’s, the Chinese restaurant in town, and brought back dinner for them.
The rest of the night the
y watched a ‘Walking Dead’ marathon, to which they both got hooked on, and slept. And, aside from Jake doing a few chores, and Gia having to participate in a conference call pertaining to work, they did the same thing on Monday. Though they didn’t have sex in those two days, they slept in each other’s arms.
But one thing troubled Jake in that time. He had received a call from his mother while downstairs fixing something for him and Gia to eat. She told him that Jennie left and didn’t say where she was going.
Jake was already up when Gia woke up on Tuesday. He helped her pack, well, more like watched her pack and copped some feels as they giggled, and walked her to her rental car in front of the B&B. He had driven it up there from the parking area on the side while she was still sleeping.
After watching her drive away, Jake couldn’t wait for her to return on Friday. Boy, he knew he had it bad for her. Then his thoughts turned to Doug and anger replaced the bliss he was feeling at that moment.
Well rested and the swelling having gone down, Jake was ready to get back to work. Not unclogging toilets or changing light bulbs, but horse training.
When he arrived at Cord’s, he and Cord, and Rory on speaker phone, began to plot. Jake didn’t want to involve them with his problem with Doug but the boys shut him up.
Satisfied with the way the conversation went, he then walked to the small round pen with a new horse to train.
Chapter 21
On Thursday night, Cord got a call from Billy, then immediately called Jake and told him to head down to Roxy’s.
Waiting at the door to Roxy’s was Rory. Cord was already inside, at the back of the bar, talking with Billy while sipping a beer.
The two boys walked in and joined their friend. Billy produced two more long necks and then he lined up four shot glasses and filled them up with the finest whiskey he sold. All four raised their glasses and downed their shots.
“Doug was kicked out of my motorcycle club a few days ago. He’s got no one backing him. Word is he’s running scared.” Billy informed them.
“Why’d he get kicked out?” Jake asked.
“The heat is on us for a string of felonies, lately, and all roads lead to Doug. No one wants this kind of problem and a lot of us threatened to pull out. The guy he was with that night, Lane ‘Papa’ McGavin, was thrown out the week before for being involved with an underaged chick. There was talk that Doug and he double teamed.”
“Piece of shit,” Jake mumbled.
“Why’s he running scared?” Cord asked.
“Because he knows he dicked around the wrong people thinking he’d have the club’s support.
“So, do we know where he’s hanging out now?” Jake asked Billy.
“Not here. I can tell you that for sure.” Billy sniggered. I’ll throw that motherfucker out by his dick, he ever steps foot in here again.” He refilled their glasses, then scanned the bar and saw a couple of cowboys needing a refill. He walked over, refilled their drinks, then came back to the boys.
Jake looked around, nonchalantly, and spotted the chick that he took out to the parking lot and kissed, a while back. She was watching him and when they locked eyes, she slowly, seductively swiped her lips. He picked up his beer and took a sip as he turned his attention, unfazed, back to his friends. “Jennie’s not living at my mom’s anymore. Do you think she’s back with him?”
“I wouldn’t be surprised.” Rory answered.
All of them nodded their heads.
“So, how do we play this?” Rory asked.
“My guess is you don’t have to do a thing. He’ll get what’s coming to him.” Billy said.
“Not good enough. I want him.” Jake said.
Cord stuck his hand out to Billy as he dropped a twenty. “All right, you guys ready to do this?” He asked his friends. “Billy, thanks for everything, man, and keep your ears open.”
They all shook hands and walked out. Fifteen minutes later they pulled up to an in-need-of-repair small home and got out of Cord’s truck. Cord hung back as Jake and Rory went up to the porch.
Just as they were about to knock on the wood of the screen door, Dan came out. No doubt he had seen the truck pull up.
Jake stared into Dan’s eyes. Dan nodded his head, then looked to Rory and held out his hand. Rory shook it, then Dan turned back to Jake, his hand still up, but not extended.
Jake put his hand out and Dan grabbed it and shook.
“Thanks,” Jake said.
Dan nodded his head again.
They all felt awkward for a beat.
“You guys want to come inside?”
“Nah, we just stopped by to say thank you,” Jake said.
“How’s your girlfriend? That was your girl that Doug slugged?”
“Yeah. She’s good. She, ah, wanted to thank you, too.”
Again, Dan nodded his head. He walked over to the outdoor couch and sat. “I’d offer you a beer, but I don’t keep that stuff around anymore.”
The guys walked over and Jake leaned his back against the wood railing as Rory sat on a chair.
“That’s good. How’s that going?” Jake was referring to his sobriety.
“Good, good.” He nodded. He changed his head movement from up and down to side to side. “Oh man, it’s a constant struggle.”
“Yeah, I imagine.”
“Is he gonna stay by the truck and not come over?” Dan asked, referring to Cord.
Cord heard him; he had been wrestling with his feelings. Dan and he went way back along with Rory and Jake. While by the truck, he had remembered all the good times, the fun times, the first times for everything in their lives. The first time they cut out of school together and went down to the Pedernales River to swim. They were in the sixth grade and from then on, they always went down to hang out by the river. The first time they all picked up a cigarette together was down by that river. They had thought they were cool, but all of them hacked their brains out and that put an end to their thinking they had to smoke to be cool.
He remembered the first time they drank; it was from a bottle of whiskey that Dan had looted from his father’s unlocked liquor cabinet. They had taken it down to the river. He remembered Jake throwing up and Rory sitting in it. He smiled when he recalled that. He recalled the time they all took this chick, Rita Wilson, down to the river and had sex with her. She was a willing participant and she suggested it. There were so many firsts; their first bar fight, and their first plane ride to Las Vegas, when they turned twenty-one, came to mind. Hahaha, He chuckled to himself, remembering their first trip to Vegas and all the women they had.
“I don’t know, man?” Jake replied. “He’s not why we’re here. If you weren’t there that night, my girl could have been seriously injured and I want you to know how grateful I am that you were there.”
They all heard the footsteps on the stairs. Rory and Jake grew quiet. This was something that Cord and Dan had to work out.
“No, I’m not gonna stay by my truck, moron,” Cord said as he extended his hand with a hint of a smile.
Dan jumped up and shook it. “How’s it going?”
“Good, you?”
“Good. I… uh… Cord, I can’t tell you how sorry I am. I wish I could take it back. I’m so embarrassed.”
Cord nodded his head. “That was a dick move you pulled on my wife, Dan. I expect that shit will never happen again-”
“No, no, it won’t”
“-and we’ll move on.”
“Thank you, thank you, Cord,” Dan said, nodding his head, grateful for the second chance.
The four boys hung out for another hour shooting the breeze and laughing, talking about old times. They said goodbye, but not before Cord invited Dan down to the river that coming Sunday.
Cord dropped Jake and Rory off at their vehicles they had left in the parking lot of Roxy’s. Jake got in his truck and drove for home. He had gotten a text, and after reading it he turned his truck around and headed to the Salty Dog, a little honky-tonk near Wimberley.
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br /> He put his truck in park when he pulled into the lot and called Gia.
“Hey, baby.”
“Hi.”
“How’d work go today?”
“Long and boring. How’re you feeling?”
“Good. I haven’t had a headache all day and I can remember how many stitches I have.” He chuckled as she laughed softly. “How are you feeling, darlin’?”
“Okay. I have a dull ache by my ribs and the swelling is gone. I didn’t even take a pain killer today.”
“Oh, man. I just got hard. I’m gonna need you to sit on me tomorrow.”
She chuckled. “Yeah, I can’t wait, believe me. I miss you. Where are you now? Home?”
“Yeah,” he said without missing a beat. He didn’t want to lie to her, but he didn’t want her to worry or know what he was about to do. In fact, he didn’t even call his friends when he got the text that Doug was at the Salty Dog. He wanted him all to himself.
“Are you in for the night?” he asked her.
“Yeah. I’m already in bed and reading notes for tomorrow’s meeting.”
“Yeah? Well, put them notes down, woman, and tell me what you’re wearing now?”
She let out a short laugh as she threw the notes aside. “I am wearing your black T-shirt and-”
Jake heard rustling on her end.
“-I just tossed my panties.”
Now it was Jake’s turn to let out a quick boisterous laugh. He looked up to see the door to the Salty Dog open and he paused.
“Jake?”
“Yeah, baby. I’m here. I just grabbed the panties you tossed and was sniffing them. Mmmm, so fucking intoxicating.”
The door opened again and out walked Doug. He was alone and walking in the opposite direction of where Jake was.
“Jake, I love it wh-”
“Baby, I gotta go. I’m sorry. I’ll call you later.”
