“Shit!” Joshua slid to a halt and jumped out. The car was upside down in the water and sinking fast. He grabbed the towline on the Jeep and scrambled down to Brody’s car.
“Hit the reverse button, Colin!”
“The line is snagged on something!” Tanner ran down and tried to get it free.
“It’s sinking!” Paige screamed.
Colin jumped in the Jeep and put it in reverse, stopping the car from sinking completely. He put it in four-by-four, but it had been cold and rainy all day and the mud was making it hard for him to back up. The Jeep wasn’t backing up, but the car had stopped sinking.
“Pull it out!” Tanner got the towline untangled.
“I can’t! I can only keep it from sinking more!”
Joshua jumped into the cold water and went under. Katarina was still strapped in her seat upside down and their eyes met. Hers were terror-filled. Joshua tried the door and, though it wouldn’t budge, the window was down just enough. He motioned Katarina back and kicked it with all he had. The glass shattered and he tried to get her out. He was running out of air and went back up for a breath.
“Hurry up!” Joshua yelled before diving back under.
He reached for the seatbelt. He popped it off and grabbed her. They made it to the surface, where Damon was already dragging Brody out of the water. Katarina was like a dead weight in his arms and Joshua realized she wasn’t breathing.
“Kat!” Josh put her down and CPR. He pumped her chest and then another breath. “Oh God, please. Please don’t leave me, Kat!”
Everyone remained silent as Josh tried to bring Kat back to life. Colin was crying, and Brody was sitting on the shore shaking his head.
“I didn’t mean to.”
Damon whirled on him. “Not. One. More. Word.”
“Kat, please.” Josh gave her another breath, cradling her in his arms. “I love you.”
Paige stepped back. She had heard it as well as the rest of the group. What Joshua thought had been a quiet whisper was actually a devastated cry. Kat coughed loudly and spit water out. She took a deep breath and coughed again.
“Joshua?”
“Oh, God!” Joshua held her in his arms and felt her heartbeat on his chest. Kat’s arms went around him as the ambulance pulled up.
“You don’t ever come near my daughter again!” Jake was charging down the embankment toward Brody, yelling, “I will kill you!”
“Jake.” Parker tried to grab his hand. “He’s just a kid.”
“A stupid asshole kid who very nearly killed our daughter!”
“I’m sorry!” Brody broke down and two paramedics pulled him up, and loaded him into an ambulance.
The other paramedics put Katarina into another one.
“I’ve got room for two,” he told them.
“Parker, take Josh. I’ll meet you at the hospital.” Jake rested his head against Parker’s before getting into the ambulance. “She’s okay, babe.”
“I love you.”
Damon got in the Jeep and they got Brody’s car back up on the shore before taking off to the hospital. Parker was with Katarina, and Joshua sat in the waiting room with everyone else. Damon handed him his keys.
“She could have died.” Joshua broke down.
“Joshua?” Paige looked at him.
“Oh God, I’m sorry, Paige. We were supposed to go out.”
“I don’t care about that. Is she going to be okay?”
Joshua ran a hand through his hair. “Yeah, she will be.”
“You saved her life. You should go get changed. Your clothes are soaked.”
“I’ll take him.” One of the nurses took Joshua by the arm.
Damon came up next to her and put his arm around her. “Are you okay? I know you heard him.”
“Now’s not the time.”
“Damon?” Lily stood nearby with his gym bag.
“Lily!” Damon ran and picked her up in his arms. The bag dropped and Lily wrapped her arms around him.
“I brought your car.” Lily held him tight.
“You did? How did you get my stuff?”
“I went to your locker. I kind of figured your combination was your birthday.”
“It’s your birthday too.”
“You should get changed. You’re going to freeze.”
“I don’t feel it.” Damon searched her face. “What’s wrong?”
“They said you went in. I — didn’t know…” Lily choked back a sob.
“Hey, I’m fine.” Damon pulled her close.
“You’re wet.”
“I’ll just go change.”
They waited tensely on Parker and Jake to get their daughter’s update. Katarina had been taken to X-ray to look for any signs of broken bones. Joshua sat with the rest of the guys. Paige had gone home and Joshua glanced at his friends.
“I feel bad.”
“She heard you, but better to know now than way later on,” Tanner told him. “You love her.”
“I always have.” Joshua sighed.
“Joshua, you can see her now,” Parker said tiredly as he entered the waiting room.
Joshua pushed open the door to Kat’s room, and then sat down next to the bed. He took her hand and put his head down. The tears came and he didn’t even bother to try and stop them. He had almost lost her tonight.
“Hey.”
Joshua looked up and saw her smiling at him. “Hey.”
“Don’t cry. I’m alive, thanks to you.”
“When I saw your face in the car…” Joshua couldn’t get that image out of his head.
“I’m okay.” Kat caressed his cheek. “Look at me.”
“If I had lost you — I don’t know, Kat.” Josh shook his head.
Katarina scooted over in the bed and patted it. “Come here.”
Joshua got in and she moved closer to him. He sighed and held her close. “You’re warmer.”
“I’m tired.” Kat yawned.
“Go to sleep,” Joshua whispered.
“Will you stay here?”
“All night.”
Ryan had arrived looking for his uncles when Brody came out of the exam room. As soon as he saw Ryan he tried to get away.
“Oh, no you don’t!” Ryan threw him into the wall. “You come near my sister ever again and I will kill you.”
“Ryan.”
Ryan looked at his Uncle Jake. “Just let me kick his ass just a little.”
“Let him go. I think he’s learned a lesson. Haven’t you Brody?”
“Yes, Mr. Greco.” Brody tried to get loose and Ryan tightened his grip on the front of his shirt.
“Ever.” Ryan let Brody go and smiled when a cop immediately arrested him on aggravated speeding, reckless driving, and endangerment charges. He turned to see his other uncle smiling at him. “Hey, Uncle Parker.”
“She’s asleep, but Joshua is in there with her. She was asking for you earlier.” Parker hugged Ryan.
“I’ll wait until she gets up. I heard Joshua saved her life.”
“Yes, he did. Gave her CPR at the scene.” Jake sat down and ran his hand through his hair.
“Well, at least I don’t have to put up with asshole Brody anymore.” Ryan sat down in the chair, stretching his arms out.
Parker chuckled. “You are so much like your father.”
“Why, thank you.” Ryan winked. “Now if we could just get rid of Joe.”
“I think Nikolai is working on that.”
“Oh, God. That alone would scare the shit out me if I was a teenage boy. Nikolai Markov coming after me.” Jake grinned.
“He is just like Vince,” Parker agreed.
“Oh, good God.” Ryan sighed.
“No shit.”
“I’m kinda glad we decided to stop after one,” Jake laughed.
Parker teased, “Well, seeing that we agreed having another one of you was too risky…”
Ryan cracked up. “Really?”
“No. We just decided that with the life we lead,
one was enough, and we love her with our whole hearts. Besides, she has you as a brother.” Jake took his hand.
“And I will always have her back,” Ryan promised.
Parker hugged him. “Thank God.”
Bree attended the football game. She sat way in the back of the bleachers watching Landon play. He was picking her up afterward for their date but she had wanted to see him in action. She got quite the show. Landon towered over a lot of the players, so he was easy to pick out.
More than once she saw Chloe try to touch Landon when he came to the bench for a drink, and more than once Landon backed away. Chloe didn’t look pleased and Bree had to smile. By the end of the game she was so excited she couldn’t wait for their date to see him. The players came off the field and Bree followed them, watching them go into the locker room. She hid behind the wall watching Landon walk.
“So, you are seriously going out with Bree? Did you join the bet?” William laughed.
Landon turned on him. “You asked her out, didn’t you?”
“What? No.” William bristled at the comment and kept walking.
“Yes, you did! And not as a part of the bet. You actually wanted to date her and she turned you down flat.”
“I wouldn’t date that… thing if you paid me.”
Landon threw him up against the wall. “Don’t ever talk about Bree that way again. Are we clear?”
“Shit, Reynolds. Chill out.”
Bree covered her mouth to keep from laughing. She waited until they were gone and ran up to her room, crashing into Penny.
“Where were you?” Penny eyed her.
“The game.”
“You attended a football game?” Penny touched the other girl’s forehead to check for fever.
“I wanted to see Landon play.”
“Well?”
“God, he’s so gorgeous and he stood up for me against William.”
“Okay, that’s it. How much time do you have?”
“What? Why?”
“I wanna play.” Penny smiled.
“Uh oh…”
Landon approached Bree’s room. He knocked on the door and Penny answered, smiling.
“Hi. Right on time.” Penny stepped aside. “She’s almost ready.”
Bree came out and Landon held onto the chair. She was wearing jeans and a V-neck that hung off one shoulder. Her long hair was up, but ringlets fell across her shoulders. Her glasses were gone and she had makeup on — not a lot, but enough to bring out the shades of her eyes.
“Wow. You look beautiful — not that you don’t always, but… wow.”
“Thanks.”
“Ready?” Landon put his hand out.
“Don’t forget the jacket, Bree.” Penny handed her Landon’s jacket.
They went out to a fancy restaurant, which Bree hadn’t been ready for — especially in jeans. But when Landon was talking to the owner she knew they were safe dressed as they were.
“Well, aren’t you a beauty!”
“Thank you.” Bree blushed.
“You say hello to your fathers, Landon. I miss them.”
“Will do, Carlos.”
Bree ordered the steak. It wasn’t that expensive and she didn’t want Landon to think just because he was paying she was going to order the most expensive thing. She loved steak and this one came with the works.
“Wow, you can pack in the food.”
They brought her baked potato and Landon’s jaw dropped. It had everything you could think of on it. Bree giggled and slathered her steak in sauce.
“Have you had a lot of girlfriends, Landon?” Bree wiped her mouth.
“Nope, I haven’t had any. I’m not really all that experienced if you know what I mean.”
“Really?”
“Well, I’ve only kissed one girl my entire life. Wait, make that two now.” Landon blushed.
“Wow.”
“What about you?”
“I kissed my friend when I was twelve. I don’t think that counts.”
Landon smiled. Bree was fun. She was pretty and smart. He liked her a lot, and over the last few days, he hadn’t thought of Katiana all that much. He had to move on from her. She was dating Joe, and Landon wasn’t going to sit back any more hoping one day she’d finally notice him.
They talked for hours and held hands as they walked around the city. By the time they got back, it was almost midnight, and Landon was walking her to her room once again.
Bree knew Penny was out. She was with her boyfriend at the school across the bridge. She turned and faced Landon.
“Do you want to come in? We could watch a movie.”
“Isn’t your roommate home?”
“Nope, it’s the weekend; she’s with her boyfriend.” Bree unlocked the door.
“Okay.”
Bree walked in and took Landon’s jacket off. She crossed to the small fridge and took two sodas out and put a bag of popcorn in the microwave before sitting on the couch next to Landon.
“Horror movie or romantic comedy?” Bree held them up.
“Horror movie.” They both said it at the same time.
“I was supposed to take you out to the movies tonight.”
“Well, this is better. We can actually get comfortable.”
Landon looked at her, the shirt had fallen more, and now most of her shoulder was bare. He ran his hand along her arm and looked into her eyes.
Bree’s head pounded as his hand stroked across her shoulder. She leaned in.
The microwave announced the finished popcorn, and Bree pulled back.
“I’ll just go get that.”
Landon watched her get up and he tried to cover himself with a pillow. Damn uncontrollable boners. He hated being a healthy young man. Bree came back and settled on the couch with her legs beneath her. The movie started and Landon got comfortable. More than once Bree jumped during the movie and Landon chuckled. She looked at him.
“Can I?” Bree motioned between his legs.
It took Landon a second and then he blushed from what he was thinking. He spread his legs and Bree sat between them, snuggling against his chest. Landon put his arms around her and rested his chin on her head.
Bree could feel his erection on her lower back and she smiled, wiggling, trying to get more comfortable. That was a lie. She was making him harder and she knew it.
Landon closed his eyes and tried to think about anything and everything that would get his hard-on to go away. Nuns…puppies… nothing was working. He was stuck with a hard-on from hell with Bree between his legs. Bree turned her head so she could see Landon. She had never kissed anyone with tongue, and she really wanted Landon to kiss her. She shifted around and kissed him.
She pulled away, searching his face. Landon cupped her face and his thumb caressed her cheek. He paused, making sure this was what she wanted, Bree nodded and Landon pulled her in. He brushed his lips over hers and she sighed softly. She crawled into his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck. Landon’s tongue slid over her bottom lip and opened her mouth. Their tongues met and Bree let out a loud moan. This was what it was like to kiss someone with tongue. Shivers ran down her spine as Landon searched her mouth.
Holy shit. Landon was so hard it was killing him. He had no idea what he was doing, but he went with it. Whenever she whimpered or moaned, he’d do what he was doing again. His hand ran up under her shirt, feeling her soft skin. He broke from the kiss and nibbled at her collarbone, and then ran his tongue up her neck before finding her mouth again. Her hands were in his hair and they were both moaning and breathing hard.
Bree broke from the kiss. She wanted more and she could see he did too. She took Landon’s shirt off, rubbing her hands up his chest. Landon gripped her hair behind her neck and felt her pulling him down on top of her.
“We need to stop,” Landon whispered.
“I know.” Bree closed her eyes.
Landon got up and tried to fix his raging hard-on. He wasn’t even trying to hide it now. “I should go
. I’m… not sure I could stop myself.” He looked around and grabbed his shirt.
“It’s okay. I feel the same way,” Bree whispered. “Goodnight, Landon, thank you… for everything.”
Bree kissed him and felt Landon’s hands go around her waist, picking her up. She wrapped her legs around his waist as the kiss intensified. They broke from it, both breathing hard, and Landon put her down.
“So…yeah… I’ll see you tomorrow?”
“How about I make you dinner?” Bree offered. “Say six, here in my room.”
“Okay. Night.”
“ ’Night.” Bree watched him walk down the hall and shut the door. She picked up the phone and called Penny. “Guess what happened!”
“You had sex?”
“No, whore. He kissed me.”
“Was it one of those that gets your panties wet?”
“Oh, God, yeah!”
“Call me tomorrow. Wanna hear all about it. I’m going to get my own freak on.”
Bree draped across her bed thinking about Landon. She had wanted him and she had never felt that way about any guy. She closed her eyes and let sleep take over.
Jensen was in the bleachers watching the game, since he was sitting this one out. Again. He and Ryan had spoken more than once about the fact they kept getting benched due to their tempers on the field. Besides, Evan was playing tonight, along with his sexy roommate, Cameron, and Max. Max looked so damned good Jensen was already hard.
The ball was snapped, and Evan ran down the field, catching it perfectly before being hit hard by the opposing team. Jensen chuckled, watching Cameron get in their faces.
“Back the fuck off, asshole.” Cameron pushed him. He turned and held his hand out to Evan.
“Cameron, I can take care of myself.”
“You shouldn’t even be playing so soon after a concussion. I have no idea what the coach was thinking.”
“He was thinking that I’m awesome.” Cameron scowled. “Hey, I’m okay.” Evan stood in front of him. “Stop being so protective.”
“I can’t help it.”
Assassin's Angst: The Santorno Series Page 17
