by J. M. Miller
“I know. I’m a bit overdressed,” I replied as Spaz stepped beside Izzy.
“No way. It’s perfect,” Spaz said, emphasizing the “purr” sound with a cheesy grin.
Izzy smacked him. “Don’t be so sleazy.”
“I’m just saying,” he replied with raised brows, shifting his spiked hair with the movement of his forehead.
“What were you guys doing to the track?” I asked to change the subject before my face caught fire. I was another comment away from going back inside to change.
“Spaz got a jump ramp for Ben’s track. We started to anchor it, but decided we’d better wait until Ben got back to make sure it’s set up across from the landing hill he wants to use.”
“Nice gift. Just don’t let Gavin near it while he’s riding,” I said lowly so Gavin didn’t overhear.
Izzy laughed. “We won’t. He’s got a few more hours’ worth of stalling to conquer first.”
Spaz and Izzy moved to talk to Gavin when Lloyd walked over. “Do you want something to drink, LJ?” he asked, reaching into a cooler beside the table.
“Sure. Soda is fine, thanks.”
“Here, hun,” he said, handing me the can. “If there were music, I’d ask you to dance.” His white mustache stretched with his broad smile, spreading it higher on his cheeks.
“Thanks, and I would gladly accept.”
“You look a lot like her, you know?” he said then took a pull from his beer. “Genie.”
“I do? It’s funny how that happens when it’s not in a direct line,” I added. She was my great-aunt after all, not my grandmother.
“Very true,” he agreed. “Ben doesn’t look much like his father and me. He gets most of his looks from his mother’s side.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure about that.” I smiled nicely.
He laughed then tugged the waist of his pants, resettling them on his hips. “I warned him about you. I knew if you were anything like Genie, he’d be in a lot of trouble. I guess he chose not to listen.” His eyebrows cocked up. “And that trait he gets from both sides of the family. We’re often suckers for trouble.”
I wasn’t sure how to respond so I simply smiled as he laughed. I sipped my soda then took a corner seat near Gavin and Taylor to chat.
Dad crossed the grounds a few minutes later. He talked with Lloyd for a minute before zeroing in on Simone, who had come back out from the event house once again, this time with the boxed cake. Even though it had to be the last trip, she looked like she wanted another reason to go back. Her eyes kept shifting around the tables. The only open area left to sit was near Dad and Lloyd now that a handful of temp workers had showed up. She finally gave in and sat beside them.
Not long after, everyone perked up at the sound of a bike traveling the main road. We all fell silent and shifted our positions for a view of Stockton Estate’s entrance as Ben’s bike pulled in. He traveled around the driveway and parked beside his house. When he tugged his helmet off, his smile was instantly contagious; everyone at the table beamed right back at him. He removed his backpack and jacket, leaving it all on the bike before walking toward the tables.
“What’s all this?” he asked with a breathy laugh.
“Happy birthday,” Spaz and Izzy said first and everyone else’s voices followed behind. Spaz hopped onto his chair. And when Ben got close enough, Spaz jumped on him, nearly tackling him to the ground. After they straightened up, he began hitting Ben’s back and shoulders as if Ben had just won a medal.
Ben scanned everyone’s faces then locked eyes with me. Amidst all the greetings and birthday wishes, I smiled and gave a small wave from my seat and he responded by quirking an eyebrow. It was a silent conversation among the chaos around him. Spaz continued to smack his back playfully until the talk settled.
“Happy birthday, Ben,” Lloyd said, pulling him into a big hug.
‘Thanks, Pop. Thanks, everybody. Wow. I’m … I have no idea what to say right now.”
“Just thank your irritating friends,” Simone said, eying Izzy and Spaz. “You guys are in charge of cleanup. I expect the tables and chairs wiped down before they’re put back in the event storage area.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Spaz joked and saluted her.
My dad stood up and reached for Ben’s hand. “Happy birthday, Ben. And congratulations on signing your property papers.”
“Thanks, Carson,” Ben replied with a serious smile.
“It was nice to see everyone, and meeting some of you, but I’ve got to get to work,” Dad said as his eyes traveled over everyone, looking at Simone last. She looked back, but quickly averted her eyes.
Spaz yanked Ben into the seat beside him, at the opposite side of my table. While everyone dined on appetizers and chatted, Ben and I stole glances at each other. I smirked as Spaz got overly animated beside him. And when I spoke to Gavin and Taylor beside me, Ben’s stare was so intense it caused me to stutter.
After the cake was cut, the small crowd fizzled. Simone doled out reminders about work shifts and was the first to leave. Spaz and Izzy had already pointed toward the ramp several times before they physically removed Ben from his chair to take him over to it. Lloyd and Randall both rubbed their large stomachs and said their goodbyes shortly after. Before I knew it, Gavin disappeared with Taylor to show her the barn. I probably should’ve followed them, but I knew the chances of them getting into trouble were pretty slim. It was his time after all; he deserved to kiss the girl.
The sun sunk behind the tree line and dusk settled in. Since I didn’t help set up, I started to tear down while Ben was still over admiring the ramp. I returned most of the chairs to the event house and threw away the trash. When I passed the gazebo behind the courtyard, I noticed white flowers I’d never seen before. I watched as one of the spiraled buds began to twist and fan out, taking nearly a minute to fully open. It was the moon vine that Ben had told me about on my first day of work. I touched the white petals, amazed by the beauty that bloomed only at night.
“Beautiful,” Ben’s voice said from behind me.
I heard his last footsteps stop close to my body. “They are,” I replied, running my fingers along the petal’s delicate edge.
“I meant you.”
“Thanks,” LJ replied, turning around to face me.
She’s beyond beautiful, she’s gorgeous. She raised her eyebrows nervously as I studied every inch of her body. Her hair fell over her bare shoulders and down to the swell of her chest, the tips flicking her skin from the light breeze. The dress squeezed her hips as tightly as my hands wanted to, then flowed out, ending above her knees. My eyes traveled down past the curve of her calf, stopping at her sexy bare feet before making the return trip to her brilliant eyes.
I bit my bottom lip to make sure this wasn’t a dream. She looked amazing and she was here, for me. The thought drove me closer to her. “You wore this for me?” I asked with a grin, touching the satin tie at her waist.
She stared up at me with a humorless expression. “I’m sorry, Ben.”
“You don’t have to apologize for anything, LJ. I’m the one who’s sorry,” I replied. The need to feel her took over so I reached out cautiously and rested my hands on her hips. “I never meant to hurt you. I─”
She pressed a finger against my lips and traced them slowly, quieting me. “You’ve said it enough. You don’t have to say it anymore. I believe you.”
I exhaled as she moved her hands to my chest. “Thank you. That’s probably the best gift I’ve gotten today.”
Her lips tipped up and she reached back up to my jaw. She drew my face down to hers, pressing her lips to mine tenderly, awakening every nerve in my body.
I gripped her tighter and deepened the kiss as her hands slid to the back of my head. She pulled my face closer still and I did the same with her body, wrapping my hands around her back and grabbing her ass. She felt incredible, and I couldn’t contain the excitement building inside my body, or stop it from pressing against her. I didn’t care. I want
ed her to know how she made me feel.
Her lips smiled against mine and her breath escaped in a whispered chuckle. I smiled too then pulled back to look at her. “I can’t apologize for that,” I said with a laugh.
“I don’t want you to,” she teased with a mischievous grin.
“Hey! Hate to interrupt, but─” Spaz said, running up beside us.
“But you are,” I joked, still staring at LJ. I was afraid if I looked away, she’d disappear.
Spaz threw his hands in the air and finished walking toward us. “I could’ve texted you, but I wanted to see the action,” he replied. “Kidding. I’ve been asked to let LJ know that Taylor’s dad is here. He’s parked over by her house.”
LJ trailed her hands down my neck to my chest, still staring into my eyes. The fact that hers were still locked with mine told me so much without her having to say a word. “I guess I should go see Taylor off,” she said, backing away and finally looking at Spaz. “Thanks, Spaz.”
“No problem,” he replied, watching her pass by.
I stepped next to him and slugged him in the arm. “Quit checking her out,” I whispered, keeping my focus on LJ.
“I’m not,” he snickered and hit me back. “Lighten up, man. She’s not looking at me one bit.”
LJ turned around as she walked, ruffling the base of her dress, exposing just enough of her tender thighs to drive me insane. “Hey, Spaz?”
“Yeah?” he answered even though I shot him a sideways glare.
“Did Taylor’s dad happen to mention something about a trapdoor?” She stared at him with unwavering eyes, but a wicked little smile formed on her pretty lips.
Shit! Was that code?
“A trapdoor? No,” he answered her then turned to me. “Why the hell would he ask me about a trapdoor?”
LJ spun around and started to jog. She snatched a gift bag from the table then took off toward her house.
I knew exactly what she meant. I didn’t need any more time to decipher it and I certainly wouldn’t waste any more making it happen. Without much thought, I threw my arm sideways, smacking Spaz across the chest and grabbing the front of his T-shirt. “Leave.”
“What?” he asked, knocking my hand off his shirt.
“Thanks for the ramp. We’ll have to anchor it soon so we can jam, but for right now. You. Have. To. Go.” I emphasized every word so I wouldn’t have to repeat them.
“Dude, what the hell?” He looked at me wide-eyed then glanced up the sloped lawn to LJ before she disappeared around the side of her house. “Oh.” A smile spread across his face as he pieced it together. “I’ll go grab Iz and we’ll put the tables away before we leave. You have a good night, Ben.”
“Thanks,” I said and jogged toward my house.
Pop was camped out on the couch when I walked in.
“I’d thought for sure you’d spend more time outside tonight,” he said, half asleep already.
“Yeah, I’m probably going back out in a bit,” I lied. Hopefully, if he decided to check the house for me later, he’d just assume I left without having noticed. That’s usually what happened anyway. He’d always been the early-to-bed type.
“It was a good day for you, right?” He sat up straighter and turned to face me.
“Sure. It was really great. Thanks for helping with all of that,” I said, throwing my thumb over my shoulder, pointing toward the door. “I was really surprised.”
“Good. I’m glad.” He looked down at his feet for a moment. “You know, she is really sweet. LJ. I wish Genie had gotten the opportunity to know her better.”
“Me too. I would’ve been nice for both of them,” I admitted.
“She likes you, Ben. I can tell. She trusts you, too.” His heavy eyes met mine again as he folded his hands in his lap.
“Yeah. I think she does,” I agreed with a smile, thinking of LJ’s forgiveness.
“Don’t mess that up, son. I know that’s easier said than done, but if you truly care about her then you need to take this seriously. She’s going to own most of this place soon. That means there’s still a chance that her own blood could betray her.” He rubbed a hand over his bald head and let out a sigh. “You know, I once asked Janine about tearing the well down. If it was cursed like she’d said, why couldn’t we just rip it apart? She laughed. She actually laughed in my face. I don’t think she meant to be hurtful, though. She was just so lost and tired at that point, she needed a release.
“She told me later that the well was the catalyst, but the curse would be forever linked to this ground as long as it held heartache. I never knew what to believe, Ben. I didn’t have any information except what she’d given me, and now I’m not sure if any of it was real. That’s why I wanted you to keep looking. The longer she’s gone, the less I believe. Maybe I was just too close to notice the truth when she was alive.”
His admission was startling and I felt my chest tighten, empathetic to his sorrow. He had believed Janine for so long and now he was the one who was feeling lost. That’s why he wanted some kind of evidence. He needed something to prove his belief.
He coughed lightly, possibly holding back tears. “You’re a good man, Ben. Better than your father, better than me. I just wanted to tell you that. I’m proud of you, son.”
I wanted to tell him everything. I wanted to tell him what I’d felt when LJ granted my wish, and ask him if he’d known when Janine had granted his. I opened my mouth, but nothing came.
“I’m going to bed. If you go back out, be careful, okay? I’ll see you in the morning.” He walked down the hallway to his room.
“Pop,” I said, stepping into the hallway after him.
“Yeah?”
I looked into his eyes, fighting with myself, not knowing what to do. “Goodnight.”
“Goodnight, Ben.”
I waited for him to shut his door before I went to the basement. After what he just told me, what could I do? How was I supposed to handle it all?
I paced in front of the heavy bag, thinking about LJ and what she’d told me in her basement. Maybe the stones held all of the answers. If so, we needed to find them or what was written on them. Hopefully, they’d explain the curse so we wouldn’t have to rely on secondhand information.
I knew two truths at this point: the curse was real, and Janine lost her memories. The second might not be linked after all. Now that Pop was questioning everything, it only added to the doubts in my own mind.
I hit the bag. And hit it again. And again. And again.
Eventually, I darted through the dark tunnel and climbed my way up to LJ’s bedroom. I was confused and unsure about everything. I just needed to be with her, needed to feel her.
I knocked lightly on the trapdoor and pushed it up, noticing that the sun had finally abandoned the day. Only a dim glow entered the crack in the closet’s door. I finished the climb and stood in front of the opening, surveying the bedroom. LJ wasn’t there. I opened the door fully and moved to the bed, where a green gift bag sat in a strip of light cast from the bathroom. My name was printed on a tag hanging from the handle.
“I thought you bailed on me,” LJ said from the bathroom door. She leaned against the frame with her bare legs crossed, her body covered only with the green shirt I’d given her. “I changed,” she said with a grin.
“I noticed,” I replied, letting the bag’s tag slip from my fingers. “And I’ll never bail on you.” I stepped in front of her and drank her in again, nearly every inch of her lean legs exposed. “This is exactly like I pictured.” I grabbed the bottom corner of the shirt and tugged.
She planted a chaste kiss on my cheek then walked around me to the bed. “I think you should open your present.”
“You didn’t have to get me anything. I’m completely happy with your forgiveness.” I turned around and she patted the bed beside her
“Just open it.” The green shirt rode higher up her thighs as she crossed her legs.
I picked up the bag and sat down, eying her suspiciously.
After parting the handles and digging through mounds of tissue, I pulled out a folded wad of fabric, banded with cardboard around the center. Curtains? “I think you might be taking things a bit too fast,” I joked.
“You mentioned sleeping in the basement to get away from the sun,” she said, sounding deflated.
“I’ve wanted these for a while actually, so thank you. I tend to procrastinate when it comes to my room. But you already know that.”
“You won’t procrastinate hanging these.”
“Oh yeah? And why’s that?”
“Because I’m going to hang them with you so we can test them out,” she said, taking the curtains out of my other hand, dropping them into the bag, and tossing it all onto the floor.
“That’s a really good motivational tactic. I think it might work.”
She stood up and sashayed around a trunk and a few open boxes to get to her bedroom door. She clicked the lock and came back to me. “Gavin won’t bother us and Dad won’t be home until after two.”
I spread my legs and pinched the bottom edge of the shirt to pull her closer. “Are you sure you want this?” I asked her, though I wasn’t completely sure myself. Well, I know what my body wants. My body had wanted her since the first time I’d laid eyes on her uptight skinny ass. But my mind kept questioning everything that Pop had said. I wanted to be a better man. And I didn’t want to let LJ down. Do I wait for more answers, or do I accept that we may never find the truth?
LJ rubbed her hands against my jaw, running her fingers so lightly along my skin that it sent ripples down my neck. She leaned down and kissed the corner of my mouth. “I want you.”
Those words knocked over my conscience’s scale, then lit it on fire for good measure.
I reached around her body and ran my hands up the back of her thighs, trailing my fingers as lightly as she’d done to my face. Her mouth came back down to mine, fast. She straddled my lap and dropped her hands to my waist, tugging at my shirt.
