Force of Nature

by Melissa Toppen

  “Hello.” I press the receiver to my ear, pulling my legs up in the recliner with me.

  “Laken, hey, it’s Brylan.”

  “What’s up?” I ask, honestly a little surprised that he’s calling me.

  “Not much. Just out running some errands. Hey listen, I wanted to see if you were interested in catching dinner with me on Friday night.”

  “This Friday?” I ask, my gaze shooting upward to find Thad leaning against the wide arched doorway that separates the living room from the foyer.

  My stomach twists at the sight of him and it takes everything in me to hold my thoughts together.

  “Yeah, I thought it might be fun. My way of apologizing for the other night.”

  “You have nothing to apologize for,” I say into the phone, Thad’s eyes not leaving mine as I speak.

  “I kind of do. I had too much to drink and I feel really bad about that guy having to take you home. Let me make it up to you. Dinner at Perry’s Diner tomorrow night? Just you and me.”

  “I don’t know, Brylan,” I say, hesitant to give him the wrong impression.

  “No expectations. I promise. I just want a chance to catch up a little more. I feel like I kind of blew that opportunity last weekend.”

  “It was a party for you. I didn’t expect your undivided attention.” My face flushes under Thad’s heated gaze.

  “I know, but I’d still like a do over. What do you say?”

  “Dinner sounds great,” I finally concede, not sure how I can decline without seeming like an ass.

  I don’t miss the way Thad’s expression shifts or the knot that presses into my stomach when it does.

  “Perfect. I’ll pick you up at seven?” Brylan continues even though my full focus is on the man in front of me.

  “Okay,” I agree. “I gotta go. See you tomorrow.” I quickly hang up without waiting for a response.

  “Hot date tomorrow?” Thad pushes away from the door frame but doesn’t step any further into the room.

  “More like dinner with a friend,” I counter, standing.

  “That guy has no interest in just being your friend,” he tells me.

  “If I didn’t know any better I’d say you’re jealous,” I tease, taking two calculated steps forward.

  He opens his mouth to respond but snaps it closed when Seth comes strolling into the room. He slides right past Thad and drops onto the couch, completely oblivious to what he walked in on.

  “What are you doing?” I turn my attention to my younger brother.

  “Waiting for Dad. He’s making me and Josh help paint the barn,” he grumbles, crossing his arms over his chest in a total pout maneuver.

  “Aww, boo hoo. Little Sethie poo has to actually work,” I tease, pouting out my bottom lip.

  “I hate summer break,” he announces, ignoring my comment. “Why can’t I have two months off like everyone else at my school? Instead I have to work on this stupid ranch from dusk ’til dawn.”

  “I think you mean dawn ’til dusk,” Thad corrects, laughing when Seth gives him the stink eye.

  “Come on you three,” my mom says, stepping up next to Thad who’s still in the doorway. “Come eat before it’s all gone.”

  “I’m not hungry.” Seth pouts harder.

  “On that note.” I laugh, quickly slipping past my mom before making a bee line for the kitchen.

  “Hey.” Thad catches up to me seconds later, stopping me in the hallway. “We still on? Creek after lunch?” he asks, his voice low as his hand finds my hip and gives it a firm squeeze.

  My entire body tenses and an intense need I’m not sure I’ve ever felt instantly courses through me. Swallowing hard, I do my best to seem unaffected by his touch even though I’m more than just affected. I’m consumed by it.

  “I’ll be there,” I agree, keeping my voice quiet as to not be overheard before quickly turning and making my way into the kitchen.

  Chapter Fifteen

  “I was beginning to think I was being stood up,” Thad announces as I slide off Cocoa and tie her off to a nearby tree.

  “Sorry, I got roped into helping my mom,” I say, barely able to get the full sentence out before Thad steps up in front of me and pulls me into his arms.

  “Do you have any idea how hard it was for me to be around you today and not do this?” He slides his hand around the back of my neck and leans in, his lips brushing mine so gently that goose bumps instantly pepper my skin. “Or this.” He trails his tongue along my bottom lip. “Or this.” He slides his other hand between my thighs, his touch causing me to moan against his lips.

  “Did you ask me to meet you here to torture me or are you going to take me?” I smile, knotting my hands into the back of his hair as I deepen the kiss.

  This seems to be all the encouragement Thad needs. One minute I’m standing in front of him, the next I’m pinned against a tree, my tank top and shorts left abandoned somewhere on the ground. My panties are shoved to the side as Thad moves inside of me with a force that shows his desperation. The thought only turns me on more – knowing I make him feel even a semblance of what he makes me feel.

  The bark scratches my back with each thrust but the pain is easily masked by the pleasure building deep within my belly. I can’t fight it. Can’t even begin to. Once it’s starts there’s no stopping it. Not with Thad working my body like he can read my mind and knows exactly what I want.

  It’s seconds before I explode around him, my cries echoing through the thickly wooded area around us. Thad’s hand settles over my mouth to quiet me, his face going into my neck as he groans out his own release.

  We’re both still panting like we just ran a marathon when he pulls back and hits me with a sexy smile. Taking a step back with me still in his arms, he hoists me up, sliding out of me seconds before my feet hit the ground beneath us.

  He slides the condom off his impressive length before tucking himself inside his boxer briefs and pulling up his jeans. Tying off the top of the condom, he shoves it into his front pocket and bends to retrieve my shirt from the ground.

  “Looks like it got stepped on.” He laughs, wiping a dirty footprint off the pale pink material before extending it to me.

  “Thank you.” I slide the shirt over my head, wincing a little as the material hits my back.

  “You okay?” Thad grabs my elbow and twists me slightly, lifting my top back up. “Shit, Laken. Why didn’t you say something?” he asks, shaking his head as he releases my arm.

  “It didn’t hurt that bad during. Does it look bad?” I ask, scanning the ground for my shorts, which I locate just a couple feet to my right.

  “It’s pretty scratched up. No blood or anything but you’re definitely red.”

  “Totally worth it,” I say, leaning down to snag my shorts before quickly stepping into them. “I gotta go.” I press up on my tip toes and lay a quick kiss to Thad’s scruffy jaw.

  “Love me and leave me. I knew you were only using me for my body.”

  “Now you’re catching on.” I smile, not able to resist the urge to press up and kiss him for real this time, letting my lips linger on his longer than is probably acceptable for a casual hookup. “I mean I could stay.” I settle back on flat feet, my palm flattening against his chest as I look up at him. “As long as you don’t mind never seeing me again, because my mother will probably kill me if I don’t get my butt back up to the house.”

  “I rather like you alive,” he tells me, a grin playing on his full lips.

  “Thought so.” I wink playfully before taking a full step back. Not able to fight the ridiculous smile currently taking over my mouth.

  Worried I’m coming across too much like a giddy teenager, I quickly turn and head toward Cocoa. I battle with myself the entire time I’m untying her from the tree, trying to stop myself from saying anything else.

  “Be cool, Laken,” I mutter to myself as I hoist myself onto my horse. Too bad I don’t have a cool bone in my body. At least not when it comes to dealing with
really hot guys who just fucked me senseless against a tree in the middle of the woods. If I did I probably wouldn’t be saying the next words that leave my mouth. “You got plans later?” I ask, instantly worried that he might find the question a little desperate.

  I mean honestly, he just rocked my world not five minutes ago and already I can’t stop thinking about when we can do it again.

  “That depends.” He smirks in my direction.

  “On what?”

  “On whether or not this blonde chick I’m currently hanging out with decides to pay me a visit.”

  “Hanging out? Is that what we’re calling it?” I ask, knowing without question that he’s referring to me.

  “What else would we call it?” He cocks his head to the side. “Fucking?” His smile turns wicked and a flush of heat floods my lower belly.

  Lord help me. If I don’t get out of here now I may never leave.

  “Hanging out is good,” I tell him, laughing as I guide Cocoa around. “Leave the door unlocked for me.” I look back over my shoulder.

  “I don’t have a lock,” he calls out as I urge Cocoa forward.

  “Even better.” I throw him one last smile before Cocoa takes off down the path that leads back toward the house.

  Chapter Sixteen

  “You look beautiful,” Brylan tells me as I step out onto the front porch into the muggy evening air.

  “Thanks.” I look down to my casual top and dark jeans, not sure what exactly is so beautiful about me today.

  I certainly didn’t try as hard as I would have if it were Thad I was having dinner with. And even then the little effort I did put forward was in hopes of seeing him later.

  “You ready?” Brylan offers me his arm. I hesitate for a split second before taking it, allowing him to lead me to his car parked a few feet from the front porch.

  He opens the passenger door, making sure I’m settled inside before closing it and crossing around the front of the car.

  I can’t help but feel like he’s hoping for more out of this than he’s leading on. I can’t remember a time when we were dating that he ever opened a car door for me. The thought makes me a bit uncomfortable but knowing I can’t escape now I try to push it away and focus on something else.

  Unfortunately that something else comes in the form of a tall, mysterious, incredibly sexy man. It’s become a thing here recently – me thinking about Thad. More so than when I was only crushing on him a bit. Now that I’ve had him inside of me, felt the deliciousness of his weight and the power of his touch, he seems to be the only thing I can think about.

  After our little romp in the woods yesterday you’d think I would have been satisfied, but truth be told it only made me want him more. And it certainly didn’t stop me from practically attacking him right after midnight when I came storming into his camper like a ravenous animal.

  It’s like I’m a completely different person with Thad. I swear I don’t recognize myself at all when I’m with him. He makes me feel wild and unhinged. I’m completely swept up in all that he is.

  “So I was thinking maybe after dinner we could swing by the old theater.” Brylan disrupts my thoughts as he pulls his Mustang out onto the street. “There’s a rendition of Grease going on there that doesn’t totally suck, or so I’m told.”

  “I really shouldn’t.” I force a smile so he doesn’t sense my unease. “I have to be up extremely early tomorrow to help my dad.”

  “Ranch work is never done.” He nods, not pressing the matter. “Maybe another time then.”

  “Yeah, maybe.” I turn my gaze out the window, watching the beautiful countryside pass by through the dark tint.

  I’ve been dreading this outing all day, and as much as I didn’t want to go, I have to admit watching Thad try to act like he didn’t care that I was going out with another man was quite entertaining. It seems I’m not the only one that’s affected.

  Brylan chats freely on the twenty minute drive to the diner. I only retain a fraction of what he says, doing more nodding than actual listening. I can’t keep my mind in the here and now and I’m not so sure that’s a good thing. It’s only been three days since my first time with Thad and already I’m walking around like a love sick zombie. I haven’t been able to focus. I spend all of my time thinking about him. I swear it’s like he’s cast some sort of spell over me.

  “Well, we’re here,” Brylan announces as he pulls into a vacant spot in the small diner parking lot and kills the engine. “You okay?” he asks, pulling the key from the ignition.

  “Yeah.” I offer him a reassuring smile.

  “You seem...distracted.”

  “I do, don’t I?” I shake my head. “Sorry about that. I’ve just got a lot on my mind right now.”

  “What do you say we leave the actress and law student in the car and have dinner as Laken and Brylan, the same two kids who used to come here twice a week after school.”

  “You know what? I like that idea. And in the spirit of the past I might even splurge on a mint chocolate chip milkshake.” I smile.

  “There she is.” Brylan chuckles, waiting for me to exit the car before joining me on the sidewalk.

  —-

  Dinner turned out to be way better than I expected, especially given how distracted I was in the beginning. After we entered the restaurant, it took less than five minutes for the outside world to fade away.

  As soon as we slid into our old familiar booth a sense of nostalgia washed over me and for the first time since returning to town I remembered how much I really did love my life here.

  Sure, it wasn’t all sunshine and roses and I spent more days dreaming about the day I could leave than I did anything else. But that’s not to say that I didn’t also have it good.

  The longer we sat there, the more I remembered the things I loved about Brylan too. How much fun we used to have together. The football games and school dances, lake parties and bowling nights. He reminded me of the girl who loved him once, even though that girl feels more like a stranger than someone I used to be.

  Now, lying in bed hours later, I can’t seem to stop replaying the events of the last few days on repeat in my head. Brylan, Thad, who I was then, who I am now. I don’t even recognize this life anymore.

  Rolling to my back, I let out a sigh of frustration before pushing up into a sitting position. The room is dark save the small sliver of light that seeps in under the door from the hallway.

  Looking at my bedside table I’m surprised to see it’s already after two in the morning. The house will start to wake in about three hours yet here I am having not even gone to sleep.

  Standing, I quietly cross to the far side of the room and pull back the curtains, my eyes going directly to the camper. It’s a few yards back from the house but close enough that I can see the lights flickering from within. Either Thad is up and watching television or he fell asleep with it on.

  I didn’t get to see him after my dinner with Brylan. I got home a little after dark and he still hadn’t come in for the night. I had considered waiting around for him at the camper, but worried that might seem too desperate so I decided to call it a night.

  Now, knowing that he’s there, the urge to go to him is simply too strong. I think on my decision for all of ten seconds before I slip on a zip up sweatshirt over my tank and plaid pajama shorts and quickly exit my room, padding down the stairs as quietly as possible.

  I slide into a pair of flip flops next to the door and do my best to make as little noise as possible as I slip out the back door.

  When I reach the camper moments later, I make the split decision to walk in instead of knock – my gaze immediately going to the back of the camper where the bed is located.

  The door snaps shut behind me and Thad’s head shoots up, his tired eyes finding mine. I should have known he’d be sleeping. My dad has everyone up and working at sunrise and given that I kept him up most of the night before, he’s probably exhausted. I immediately question my decision to come.
r />   “Laken?” he grumbles, his voice thick.

  “It’s late. I can go,” I immediately offer.

  “Shut the fuck up and come here.” He holds out his arms and I immediately go to him.

  Slipping off my jacket and flip flops, I climb into bed and slide into Thad’s arms which close around me the instant my cheek hits his chest.

  “Just sleep for now.” He drops a kiss to the top of my head before relaxing into the pillow.

  “Okay,” I agree on a whisper.

  As much as I would rather be doing other things, I have to admit that lying here in his arms might be even better. And even though we agreed to only sex, I already feel it becoming something more.

  It’s only minutes before the steady thump of his heart against my cheek and the slow rise and fall of his chest as he breathes begins to lull me to sleep.

  —-

  “Hey.” There’s movement beneath me seconds before my body shifts and my head comes to rest on a pillow. I barely register Thad’s voice when he speaks again, this time directly into my ear. “I have to go. Stay here. Sleep. I’ll come by and wake you in a little bit.” Even in my half sleep state my skin prickles as his breath dances against my neck.

  “Mm hmm,” I say but I’m so tired I’m not really sure I register his words.

  His lips touch my temple and the bed shifts before everything once again goes dark.

  Chapter Seventeen

  I stretch my arms above my head, the sun shining into the camper warming me. I open my eyes, blinking around the bright room.

  I don’t know what time it is, but for the first time I don’t really care. I feel perfect. Tucked in Thad’s bed, surrounded by his incredible scent. It’s not as good as waking up with him next to me, but it’s the next best thing.