Always On My Mind: A Bad Boy Rancher Love Story (The Dawson Brothers Book 1)

by Ali Parker

  "I was a hired gun for the mafia, Sicily. Me being able to snap and kill without mercy was the main point of my job. It's taken me a lot of time to lock that shit up." He pulled his hand up and ran it through his hair. "I'm not proud of it, but I was born into that shit. It's been a long ass road to get to this point where I beat someone senseless instead of putting a few bullets in their skull."

  She put the milk and eggs down, putting her back to him.

  Her silence was concerning, but they needed to work through his aggression and tendency toward violence sooner rather than later. It almost busted up their relationship the last time he threw someone around a room. Martin. The little fucker deserved it. And more.

  "Sicily." Drake moved toward her and stopped beside her. "Please don't shut down on me."

  "I'm not." She glanced up and smiled, shocking him a little. "I'm honestly trying to process all of it. My brother Johnny is aggressive and violent too." She shrugged as her smile faded off her pretty face. "I know you guys don't get along-"

  "It's not that we don't get along, baby doll. We're too much alike. That's the reason why it was so tense when he came to visit." He wrapped his arm around the back of her waist and leaned in, pressing his teeth to her shoulder carefully.

  "I know. It's funny that he would be totally against me dating you to the point of throwing a fit. You remind me a little bit of him. He's still pretty unstable if you ask me. You appear stable." She reached up for a bowl. "Just promise me that you will try and not fight over the holidays. My family is going to be hurting because of Momma not being there this year."

  "I wouldn't do anything to upset you, Sis. You know that. Just make sure you tell your brother to keep his ass back. I'm not going to front him, but I sure as hell am not going to sit still if he puffs up to me. It doesn't work like that, baby." He took the bowl from her and reached around to grab the eggs, brushing his arm by her breasts and wagging his eyebrows. "I say we eat and get back in bed."

  "We have that open house at the bakery this afternoon." She swatted at him and cut open the package of bacon in her hands. "Enough about my family. Let’s talk about something else.” Sicily moved up behind him, pressing her cheek to his back and sliding her arms around his waist. "Did D want you to come back to Chicago when he called? Does he need you?"

  Drake stiffened. What an odd shift in the conversation. The last thing he wanted to do was frighten his beautiful girl, but honesty was the best policy, or at least it had been when he was able to follow it.

  "He does need me, but the fucker won't confess to that. He said that they figured out who killed Vivian, but he couldn't tell me over the phone. I'll have to break my own rules and get up there for a visit again soon, or maybe he can come to New York before too long. The city is so big that we could probably meet without putting me at risk." Drake cracked another egg and tried to shove the feeling of foreboding off of him. He couldn't go back to that life, and yet he couldn't leave Demetri high and dry. His brother had done far too much for him to turn his back on him.

  "You know that if we needed to help him, or if you needed to, that I would be okay with that." She kissed the back of his shoulder softly.

  He lifted his hands into the air and turned around to face her before wrapping his arms around her shoulders. "Oh yeah? You gonna join the mafia with me?"

  Her eyes widened a little. "No, but family is everything. I would do anything if Johnny called and needed me. It should be the same for Demetri."

  Warmth filled him completely. "Good. Family always comes first for me too. No matter what that means."

  She pulled him down and consumed his wayward thoughts with the warm wetness of her sweet mouth.

  Chapter 8

  Sicily

  Sicily took the long way back to her house, trying to get into a more peaceful mood before having to go up to the bakery. It had been a long year of transitions, and it wasn't over just yet. Drake's confession about Demetri needing help and not asking for it was a little overwhelming. Where she would stand beside him no matter what, leaving her bakery and comfortable life and moving to the heart of the mafia was terrifying. She needed to talk to her brother about it, but he would have nothing good to say.

  Sadly enough, he was the only one that might understand what she was getting herself into though. He'd throw a big fit, but it was part of his charm.

  "He didn't say you guys were going back to Chicago. Stop it." She shook her head and pulled up to the house. Everyone was gone, and staying at the house sounded like bliss, but knowing about Drake's allergies put that hope on hold. She parked and got out, chuckling at how silly the man was.

  Why in the world wouldn't he have simply told her that he was highly allergic to Christmas trees? She unlocked the door and walked in to the smell of vanilla and pine. Breathing in deeply, she shut and locked the door and walked down the hall to her bedroom. She'd picked up a cute Christmas sweater to wear with winter boots and stockings the week before. Having lost all of the extra weight she packed on from losing her mother, she was more than ready to start wearing cute clothes again.

  It wasn't fair that only Kari and Lisa got to have fun in the department stores.

  She dressed quickly and picked up a locket her mother had given her on her sixteenth birthday. "I miss you," she whispered to no one as she put it on. "Still fits."

  Where she wanted to chide herself for talking to her mother, she couldn't. There was no telling if heaven were open wide and God allowed people to hear the mumblings of earth. Sicily chose to believe that he did and they did.

  A smile touched her mouth as she turned her head slowly and let the heart pick up the light, shining as if it were trying to get someone's attention.

  Her phone buzzed and she yelped and jumped. "Idiot. Stop being so sensitive." The number on the front was all too familiar. Her younger sister, Maria.

  "Hey. Are you back in New York?" Sicily put the phone to her ear as excitement bubbled up inside of her. Where they would all have a hard time that holiday season, it was still going to be good to see everyone.

  "Yeah. We just got here. Naimen is working with Johnny on the heater. It went out, I guess." Maria snorted. "You know how Johnny is. He can't ask anyone for help, God forbid."

  Sicily lay back and picked up her locket, rolling it between her fingers. "We're all like that. Remember when you bent the front wheel of your bike and hid it from all of us instead of asking for help?"

  Maria laughed loudly. "That wasn't because I was scared to ask for help. That's because I assumed Momma would beat my ass over it."

  Sicily shared the laugh. "She probably would have, but Johnny would have taken responsibility for it. He was good like that."

  "He still is." Her sister sighed softly. "When are you coming down? Everyone is already here, but you. You are still coming, right?"

  "Of course. I wouldn't miss it for anything." Sicily sat up. "We're doing an open house at the bakery this afternoon and then packing up. There's a nasty storm headed this way tonight, but I think Drake is hoping to get us there by lunch tomorrow."

  "You can't get here any sooner? I'm in a house full of hungry Sicilian men and I don't cook very well."

  "That's because you were more interested in sewing costumes for your dolls than watching Momma in the kitchen."

  "She was aggressive in the kitchen."

  Sicily laughed and got up. "She was a Sicilian woman with a room full of men to feed, and none of them being her husband. Of course she was aggressive."

  "Well, be safe on your trip down here. I'll be waiting by the door with a frying pan and a spatula to hand off when you get here."

  "Ha! Just take everyone out for pizza tonight and get donuts from Mr. D's in the morning. It's just down the road."

  "I know." Maria paused, chuckling. "I grew up here too, silly thing."

  "I love you. I'll be there as soon as I can. Give everyone a hug for me." She dropped the call, grabbed her bag and jogged toward the door. She had a couple of hours be
fore the open house started, and she needed them to finish up on her miniature treats. Everything she baked in the bakery would be on display in small bites for people to try.

  "Hopefully someone shows up," she mumbled and walked out onto the porch, almost slipping and busting her butt.

  It wouldn't be the first time. Shame no one was there to have fun laughing with her as she gripped the door handle and gave herself over to the memories of her childhood. The good ones, which there were plenty of.

  ***

  "Hey. What can I do to help?" Drake walked into the bakery, pulling off his coat and gloves as she moved around frantically.

  "Get the Creme Brule out of the oven, and turn the timer on for ten minutes." She jogged toward the back and worked to ice the rest of her flavored cupcakes as Drake moved up behind her and kissed her neck a few times. "Stop it. Get busy. It's only ten minutes until we open the doors for the event. I'm running late."

  "It's okay, baby. But, you do need to wrap up what you want to get done. Everyone is going to want to shake your hand and talk to you about your sugary madness back here. I can finish this up, and Violet will be here any second. You have to be out front." He kissed her again and walked to the oven as the timer beeped angrily. "All right. I'm coming. Jeez. Almost as bad as my girlfriend when she wants something."

  Sicily snorted and glanced up to see Violet walking into the back prep room. "Where do you need me?"

  "Here." Sicily moved back and pulled at her apron. "I'm going to go freshen up my makeup in the bathroom. Just finish icing these cupcakes. I did the chocolate and some of the vanilla. I just need-"

  "Go. We got it." Drake glanced over his shoulder. "If you hurry up and get out of here, I'll promise to wear an apron and nothing else tonight." He wagged his eyebrows playfully.

  Violet laughed. "Why does that not in any way at all sound appealing?"

  "Because lace isn't his thing?" Sicily smiled before walking into the bakery and making a beeline for the bathroom. A few people huddled outside in the cold, which made her hurry all the more. No reason to have anyone suffer.

  She checked her appearance one more time in the mirror and walked out. The lock clicked on the front door, and she moved back, a little surprised by the small crowd that had gathered outside. She shook hands with everyone and tried not to panic that most of the treats weren't out.

  "Sicily. How are you, dear? I hope it's okay that I stopped by." Judy's mother, Debbie, looked timid as she extended her hands to Sicily. The poor little old woman had been in love with the idea of owning her own bakery, and was the only competition in town, until her own grandson burnt the place down in hopes of helping his Aunt Judy pin the crime on Sicily. It was a sad situation, but Sicily had no doubt that Debbie was free of being involved in all of it. All she wanted was a place to bake where people could enjoy her treats.

  "I'm glad you're here." Sicily took her hands and moved closer, kissing the older woman on the cheek. "Make sure you come talk to me about a job. Mrs. Walker mentioned you might be interested in joining me up here, and I sure could use it."

  Debbie's eyes widened and filled with tears. "Really? After all my family has put you through?"

  "We don't choose our family, but we love them through all their craziness, right?"

  Drake's voice pulled her from her conversation. "Ho. Ho. Ho. Santa is here and dropped off all these treats. Anyone want to try some of them?"

  Sicily put her hand on her hip. "Typical. I bake everything and he takes credit!"

  Everyone laughed and gathered around as Sicily moved toward the counter and handed out her treats. The community coming by to show their support meant more to her than she could express. After everything with Judy's bakery burning down, and the crime getting pinned on her, even for a short time, she was heartbroken at not belonging with the townspeople anymore, but it would seem she was wrong.

  Most of them had stopped by.

  "We're going to need more cupcakes." Drake pulled her into a warm hug and stole a kiss. "Carrot cake? We need some veggies somewhere in here."

  "Hush and go whip the batter. Extra butter and sugar for you." She wagged her eyebrows and moved out of his hold, turning to talk to a few more people.

  Chapter 9

  Drake

  They'd wrapped up the open house at Sicily's bakery and made it back to his place just as the storm hit. Where he'd hoped to spend the night snuggled up watching movies before making love, Sicily didn't make it past the previews on the first one. He carried her to bed and held her all night, not getting much sleep himself.

  D was in trouble. The only decision was whether to step in and help him before he asked for it, or to wait and hope that he didn't.

  It seemed like a dick move not to try and support his brother, but it wasn't just him anymore. It was Sicily now too. That meant asking her to change her life completely, and he wasn't willing to do that just yet.

  The situation ran through his mind until the sun came up the next morning, leaving him achy, tired and slightly moody. He reached over and ran his hand down the curve of her hip as they lay in bed together.

  "Morning, baby doll. You ready to get moving around? We need to get on the road soon. Another storm is going to hit just before nightfall, and I know you don't want to get caught in it." He leaned over and brushed his lips by her exposed shoulder as his body woke up. She smelled like strawberries. His stomach growled in response.

  "You're poking me in the butt." She glanced over her shoulder and smiled.

  "You're lucky it's just a poke. I'm thinking penetration sounds much better, but we gotta get going. I'll have my way with you tonight. We're staying in a hotel, right?" He almost felt like a heel for not knowing. Did she book the hotel? Hell, did they even talk about it?

  "Yeah. I got us a room just down from my mom's place." She slid to the far side of the bed and got up, walking to the bathroom naked.

  Drake groaned and propped himself up on his elbow. "Come back over here and ride me before we get in the truck."

  "You just told me a storm was coming." She glanced over her shoulder, looking like a sex kitten if he'd ever seen one.

  "It is, but we have an hour." He pulled the covers off and moved to the edge of the bed, his erection thick and hard. He stroked himself and smiled at her. "Like what you see?"

  "I love it. Stop being bad." She walked into the bathroom and closed the door.

  He growled and flopped back, only to be caught off guard by her slinging the door open and moving to the bed quickly. She mounted him and smiled down at him, playful and beyond beautiful.

  "No way I'd pass this body up." She pressed back on him and moaned low in her chest.

  "Such a good girl." He reached up and cupped her ass, sitting back up and sliding his hand up her back to grip the base of her head. He made love to her mouth while she rocked her hips and fucked him slow and tenderly.

  It didn't take long and they were both panting and close to release.

  "Condom," he mumbled past the pleasure as he trembled with the need to explode.

  "I don't want one. My period just passed. Just come." She lifted her ass and bobbed on the tip of his cock as he growled loudly.

  "You know that's not how good girls do things. The ring comes first."

  "Good. Get me one and we'll talk." She pressed down and the world exploded around him, his body wracked with delicious electricity.

  He flipped them over and pressed her to the bed, giving her exactly what she asked for. All of him.

  ***

  "You nervous, Sis?" Drake reached out and took Sicily's hand, pulling it to rest on his thigh as he turned down the last street to her mother's house.

  "A little." She shrugged and turned to watch outside her window. "I really wish Johnny would have moved into another house, but he's always loved Momma’s house. I think it reminds him of Daddy."

  "And your father died when you were little?"

  "Yeah. Heart attack." She squeezed his hand before pulling her
s free. "I'm scared that my family is going to give you hell. There are six boys and my sister, Maria. She's going to love you to death, but my brothers..."

  "I have a lot of brothers myself, baby. It's going to be fine. Once they see how much I love you, and that I'm respectful of you, it's going to work out. They're just watching out for you, and I respect that." He slowed the truck a little. "We're close, right?"

  "Down at the end of the street on the left. With all the cars." She chuckled. "Looks like everyone is here."

  "What are the plans for tonight? Do you guys go to church or anything?"

  "We're catholic. We go to church as often as possible.” She glanced over and smiled. "I'm nervous and yet so excited. I haven't seen anyone but Johnny since we left for Maine in March."

  "This should be fun then." He parked behind a sleek black mustang and kept his thoughts to himself. With so many people in Sicily's family, he was sure to rub someone wrong. He would just have to keep his temper under wraps, and behave himself as best he could.

  He and Johnny hadn't gotten along at all a few weeks back when the asshole visited, but that's because Johnny reminded Drake too much of the mafia. He might just be the leader of a motorcycle club or gang, but he had bad ass written all over him.

  "All right. Let's do this, and if it gets bad, we'll just go to the hotel." Her breathing was a little off. She was beyond nervous.

  Drake got out of the truck and walked to the front of it to wait on her. He pulled her into his arms and leaned down, brushing his nose by hers. "There is nothing to worry about. This is your moment with your family. I'm good standing in the background and supporting you. Okay?"

  She nodded and glanced toward the house as her eyes got misty. "I'm scared that I'll miss my mother more than I already do."