That was all I needed to hear. Before Tuck could grab me, I took off up the stairs on a mission.
I was greeted by Bobby’s, “Jesus, this bitch! I can’t seem to get fuckin’ rid of you!” He reached out and put a hand to my chest and shoved me. I went back a couple steps, but at seeing him shove me, Ruthie jumped in and started throwing little fists at him, and screamed, “You leave Nattie alone! She didn’t do anythi-”
She was cut off by him shoving her off of him, like he had me, but she went tumbling down the stairs.
Looking at Ruthie laying at the bottom of the stairs motionless, I lost it. My brain immediately spasmed into a flashback and all I could see was Jenny laying at the bottom of the stairs of the apartment in New York.
********
I had finally found out as much information as I thought I was going to get without talking to Jenny, so I rushed as fast as I could to get to her apartment before Andrew got home. I got to the door and knocked furiously, screaming for Jenny to let me in. She opened the door and started with a pleading look in her eyes, “Talie, this is not a good time. Please, come back later. I can’t talk to you right now!”
Too fired up and blind to see the scared look on her face, I charged on. “No, Jenny. We are going to talk and we’re going to talk now. I need explanations.”
Her face paled even further, but I kept going.
“I know that you deserve better than this, and I know you know it too. What the hell are you doing with this guy?”
I was too upset and charged to notice Jenny trying desperately to stop me as my voice escalated.
“I know you came here with him four years ago, and I know you tried to leave a year after that. Then, you just come back? No way. I know you better than that! What happened Jenny? -”
Smack. Ouch. Holy hell that hurt. Jenny slapped me right across the face. When she started talking I realized she was trying to get my attention. She started whispering, faster and more forcefully than I had ever heard her talk.
“Listen to me, Talie. Forget you ever knew anything! Stop looking into this! I’m trying to protect you! And for God’s sake, you aren’t the only one I’m protecting. If something happens to me there’s a safe deposit box in my and your name at First Trust Bank on 72nd. Don’t go there unless you absolutely have to and pay attention to your surroundings. He will have you followed. Now, shut up and pray that he hasn’t heard you. You don’t know anything, do you hear me? You know nothing.”
Two seconds later, Andrew rounded the wall at the top of the stairs and my face paled.
“Jenny, come here.”
Jenny put on her best cheerful expression and rushed up the stairs. It was painfully obvious how much practice she had at playing this role.
“Oh, Andrew, sweetheart, Natalie stopped by to tell me about a date she had last night! She was so excited that she rushed over to tell me!”
Andrew’s face turned into a sneer and he spoke in a deadly voice.
“I heard everything, you bitch.”
Not even waiting for a reaction from her, he reached out and viciously shoved her down the stairs. She laid there not moving. My beautiful Jenny. I brought this on her.
Before I could check for any signs of life, though it didn’t look good, Andrew pulled a gun from behind his back and trained it on me.
Standing immobile next to Jenny’s body, I watched him pull out his phone, push a button and put it to his ear. He waited a beat and then spoke into the phone. “It’s Andrew. I need you to take care of something for me. Jenny. Right. Like she took off.” Not even saying goodbye, he ended the call and shoved it back in his pocket.
“Natalie, get up here.”
I didn’t even flinch. He could kill me for all I cared, but he was going to have to come get me to do it. “No.”
“You stupid bitch. Don’t you see what I do to people who defy me?”
“So kill me, then.”
He laughed an evil laugh.
“Oh, darling. You have no idea what you’re saying. Sure I’ll kill you. But you won’t be the only one to suffer. Think about it darling Natalie. Don’t you love your sweet sister at all? I imagine I could have quite a bit of fun with her. For a long time.”
He watched with immense satisfaction as I took in the meaning of his words and fought the nausea roiling in my stomach.
“Now she’s getting it. I do my research. And I follow through. Now you can do what I say or I’d be happy to explore that option if you like. And you can be certain, I’ll explore it exhaustively.”
I said not one word as he came down the stairs, pointed the gun at my head and set about raping me. Right next to my best friend’s body.
********
I came back to myself to find Ruthie in my arms, and I was rocking her.
“Nattie! Nattie! Nattie look at me! I’m fine! Natalie!”
I started when I realized that was Ruthie yelling in my face. Ruthie!
“Oh thank God you’re okay!”
I burst out crying and Ruthie pulled me into her arms and started comforting me. She was comforting me. She was the one who had just been through something traumatic!
“Nattie, I’m fine. A little bruised and sore probably, but fine. Relax.”
I sat there like that in her arms for a few minutes until I got it under control.
“Who’s Jenny? You kept calling me Jenny. You were sayin’ it over and over and I couldn’t get your attention.”
Her question took me off guard and I looked around. What I didn’t do was answer her.
“Where’s Tuck? And Bobby. That asshole! I’m gonna kill him!”
I started to get up and go charging off to look for him, when Ruthie grabbed my arm and pulled me back.
“Whoa, relax Nattie. Don’t worry. Tuck already dragged him out of here, and I’m pretty sure he’s probably kicking his ass out on the lawn as we speak. And anyway, I don’t think he really meant to push me down the stairs.”
I gave her a look so murderous that she cowered.
“Nattie, come on. I’m not saying he’s not an asshole and that I’m not done with him or making excuses for him or any of that. I’m just saying I think the stairs thing was an honest mistake.”
Not willing to get into it right then, I grabbed her and dragged her out the front door to find that, indeed, Tuck had been out here kicking his ass. And it looked like he had done a pretty good job.
We got out there in time to see Tuck land a vicious punch to Bobby’s already beaten face. Bobby fell to the ground, unable to keep his feet anymore.
Tuck spoke, and his voice was in its rare low and deadly form. “This is done. We don’t exist for you. I hear you even breathe in Ruth or Natalie’s direction, you’re gonna see me again. And you can be sure I’ve got more than this to give you. You got me?”
Bobby just moaned. I tucked Ruthie into the crook of my arm hoping to shield her from some of this.
Tuck repeated, “I said, You fuckin’ got me?”
Obviously, Tuck’s patience was waning, but Bobby finally answered, “Whatever. I don’t need her anyway. A bad fuck’s all she is.”
Ruthie whimpered in my arms and I pulled her into me tighter.
That broke Tuck’s temporary hold on control. He cocked his elbow back and landed one final blow to Bobby’s face. Succumbing to his injuries, Bobby’s head lolled back and he went limp on the ground.
Tuck stepped back, wiped his bloody hands on his jeans, and shook his head in disgust at the form laying on the ground in front of him. Then he turned and headed for us.
He asked me directly, “She okay?”
I answered as honestly as I could. “I think so. She’s gonna be sore and bruised and just upset in general, but I think she’s alright.”
He nodded and continued, “What about you?”
“I’m fine,” I lied.
Instead of believing me, he brought up what I had hoped he would ignore. “You freaked out. Somethin’ happened in there. Somethin’ we’re g
onna need to talk about.”
Actually agreeing with him for once, but procrastinating as usual, I answered, “I know. Just not now.” To make my point further, I inclined my head to the still in tears Ruthie in my arms.
Tuck nodded. “Right. I wanna talk to her.” With that, he reached out and curled Ruthie away from my body and into his.
Ruthie wrapped her arms around his waist and burrowed her face in his chest. Tuck reciprocated by wrapping his arms around her shoulders and began whispering into her hair.
He was talking softly, but I could still hear him. “First thing, sweetheart. I’m here for you always. Never forget.”
Ruthie seemed to cry harder so he just gave her a squeeze and continued, “Next thing. I’m done not sayin’ somethin’. I been scared you would leave me too if I started gettin’ in your business. That’s over. I’m tellin’ you, you and Bobby are done. He’s an asshole and you’re way too good for him. I don’t wanna see you lowerin’ yourself to that level ever again.”
Ruthie lifted her head and looked into Tuck’s eyes. “Thanks, Tuck.”
“My pleasure, sweetheart. Been wantin’ to kick his ass for some time now.”
She shook her head and spoke again. “No. I mean yeah, thanks for that too, but that’s not what I meant.”
He just stood there and waited for her to continue. She licked her lips, preparing to say something that was probably hard for her. “I mean thanks for carin’ enough to get in my business.”
I watched Tuck’s jaw get hard. But not from anger. No, he was fighting the emotion welling up inside him. He had needed that so bad. After his sister, he had held back from doing what he had always known. He had stopped stepping into situations that were considered other people’s business for fear that he would lose them too. He needed the affirmation that what he was doing was because he cared, not because he was trying to cause problems. He needed to show his love in its protective form and get that love back. And today, Ruthie gave it to him.
He kissed the top of her head and whispered, “I think it’s time I move on. Time to start livin’ again. Time to appreciate what I got instead’a stayin’ hung up on what I lost.”
Hearing him say those words was the dose of reality I needed. I needed to take his advice and apply it to myself. We’d both been living our lives so stuck in the past that we weren’t fully appreciating what we had in the present. Maybe I didn’t need revenge on Andrew. I still felt like it was a disservice to Jenny to just let what had happened go, but it was a disservice to myself not to. I had gotten out. I made a life for myself. A life where I was really truly happy.
With stunning clarity I realized that I was happy. Unbelievably so. I was happiest in any one of three places. In Joplin, Tennessee, on Tuck’s farm, or safely nestled in Tuck’s arms. Luckily for me, they were all in one place, safely cocooned inside one another like my very own matryoshka doll. After what I had gone through, I had thought finding happiness would be harder, but it wasn’t. It was easy because I didn’t have to find it. It found me.
I had to let Jenny go. If Tuck could do it, so could I. We could both let go of our pasts and move on. Together.
********
We had settled Ruthie in my apartment for the night and had just gotten home.
Tuck thought it would be better for her to stay in my apartment behind the security of extra locks and the alarm instead of at her townhouse until we knew if Bobby was going to heed all of Tuck’s warnings or not. I had thought she should come home with us, but they both disagreed with me. She claimed she wanted time to herself to relax and unwind, and he wanted time with me do the opposite without her in the next room. The plan had merit, and I wasn’t going to change their minds, so I went along with it.
We got into the bedroom and Tuck pulled me down so that I was facing him, straddling his lap.
He put his hands on my hips and I put mine on his shoulders as he started to talk. “Okay, Babe. We got some stuff to talk about, and you know what I mean. That was an intense scene, watchin’ her tumble down the stairs like that, but there was somethin’ more there for you. We’ve talked about how you got here and your past a little, but I think it’s time to fill in the gaps. What happened today?”
I squeezed his neck, looked into his eyes, and whispered, “You’re right. There was something more to that for me. Let’s just say I’ve been through a scene like that before with a different ending. In in a lot of ways, it was the beginning to a life I have no desire to remember.”
His grip tightened on my hips and he started to interrupt me, but I put a finger to his lips and shook my head. “No. Let me finish. I have no desire to remember it or talk about it, but I’m going to. It’s time we got everything out in the open. I’m going to tell you everything and you’re going to return the favor. But not right now. Tomorrow, please. Let’s just have tonight. Just tonight to enjoy each other without any demons from the past getting in the way. I want to make love to you and enjoy you, and if we talk tonight, it’s going to get in the way. So, please. Just let me have tonight.”
He paused for several seconds before answering, “Alright, Babe. I don’t like it, but we’ll wait.”
I smiled but he shook his head. “Tomorrow, we’re talkin’. No more delays, no more secrets.”
I agreed, “No more secrets,” and leaned down to touch my mouth to his.
I started it as an innocent kiss, but one touch of his tongue to my lips and we were gone. I moved my hands from his shoulders up into his hair and pulled my body even closer to his. His fingers flexed on my hips and secured me to him tighter as his tongue caressed mine. I could feel him starting to get hard under me and ground my hips down. A gravelly groan came from his throat and he put both his hands under my ass to lift me as he stood up. I automatically wrapped my legs around his waist and clung to him with my arms around his shoulders, all the while still lost in his delicious kiss. His taste was like nothing else. It was all Tuck. I swear he could have spent 24 hours eating nothing but onions and garlic and he would still taste good. I’d say that I’d test out my theory someday, but I doubt he would be on board.
He carried me into the bathroom and set me down in front of the shower. He broke the kiss to reach into the shower and turn the dial on. I clung to his hips with my thumbs through his belt loops to keep myself from crumbling to the ground in my daze and kissed at any piece of skin I could reach-his chest, abs, all along his tattoo, and I even reached trying to get his throat. He turned back to me and grabbed the hem of my shirt and I immediately raised my arms to help him get it off. He reached around and unhooked my bra, pulled both straps off my shoulders, and then used his hand to lift one breast and suck the nipple into his mouth. I moaned and my head rolled back. “God, baby.”
He wasted no time, using his free hand to reach down and unbutton my jeans. He popped the nipple out of his mouth and settled my breast back into place so that he could use both his hands to push my jeans and panties over my hips. As soon as they cleared my knees he stepped back to me and put his mouth back on mine. I could taste his desire in his kiss. It was fiery and rough and close to out of control, but had an underlying gentle quality that was always there when Tuck touched me anywhere. It was magnificent. I braced my hands on his upper arms and toed off my shoes and then stepped out of my jeans and panties.
Realizing I was the only one naked, I tugged on his t-shirt at his waist so he would get the hint. He knew what I wanted immediately and reached his hand over his head and back between his shoulder blades to pull his shirt off. In order to get the shirt off our kiss had broken, so I just stood back and watched the show of him losing his clothes. He was golden and tan from all of his outdoor work this summer and as cut as ever.
He quickly unbuttoned and unzipped his pants and kicked off his boots, making short work of his pants and underwear the way I had. He reached into the shower and felt the spray, grabbed my hips and backed me into the water with him following me. Instantly, his hands went back to my ass and
squeezed, while his head came down and his mouth claimed mine again. I returned the favor by running my hands down his sides, along his tattoo and around, and grabbed his delicious backside. As soon as I squeezed a growl escaped his throat and he released my ass and mouth, put a hand into my stomach and pushed me up against the tile wall.
He bent and grabbed a breast with each hand, lifting the right one and swirling his tongue around the nipple. He kneaded the left one with his left hand and then sucked hard, taking the whole right nipple into his mouth. I moaned and then followed it up with an extremely, breathy, “Tuck.”
It felt so good, and it felt that way in two places. I felt a rush of wet between my legs as Tuck stood back and ordered gruffly, “Spread, Baby.” Knowing what was coming was going to feel like heaven and already feeling a desperate need for release building in my belly, I quickly sidestepped my legs further apart. Tuck dropped to his knees and ran both his hands up my legs to the inside of my thighs, continuing all the way with one hand and sliding a finger through my slick heat. I pressed my hands into his shoulders, let my head rest against the wall and whimpered, “Baby. God, Baby.”
Tuck answered hoarsely, “Fuck, Babe. Already wet for me. Now you’re gonna come for me.” His words turned me on even more. He knew just the right things to say to me. He didn’t usually say very much while we were fooling around, but when he did it usually had pleasurable effects.
Instantly, I felt his mouth on me, licking and lapping, and then up circling my nub with just the right pressure. I grabbed onto his hair like it was a handle and held his head to me. With how turned on I was, it wasn’t going to take long for me to come. And it didn’t.
He licked me, and then finding my opening shoved his tongue inside, following a rhythm and then moving up to rapidly flick his tongue over my nub.
“Jesus, Oh my God. Oh my God. Tuck, baby. I’m gonna-”
As soon as the words left my mouth he increased his speed and I fell over the cliff, shattering into a thousand beautiful, sated pieces.
Tuck climbed back to his feet, grabbed my ass, and lifted bringing me back down onto his rock hard length. It felt so good. With him inside me, I felt so full and so right. A feeling I had never had with anyone else.
The One Place Page 14
