Arms of Serenity (Rock Services)

by Lynn, Donina

  Becca put her leg back down and whispered, “I’m sorry.”

  He cupped her face and touched his forehead against her. She could feel him trembling as he struggled to bring his body back under control.

  “Don’t apologize. I don’t want this to happen unless you are positive it’s what you want, too.”

  “I do. I just…” She stammered trying to figure out the right words to say. How could she explain that she did want to be with him, but she was scared to death of what would happen if she did? She couldn’t risk her heart that way.

  He shook his head against her. “It’s ok, Angel. You’re worth the wait. Just promise me that you won’t give in to whoever or whatever is holding you back before you can give us a chance.”

  Becca digested his words and slowly nodded. How did he figure her out so easily? Did he have the CliffsNotes version of a Becca manual somewhere? She didn’t know how he did it, but Nick had basically nailed it on the proverbial head, and he was right. She owed it to both of them to see where this would take them.

  Chapter Ten

  Becca unlocked the door to the shop and went back to the kitchen. It was an hour before she normally opened, but Nick would be coming soon. When she mentioned that she had a large order of cupcakes to bake for a surprise birthday party, he’d offered to meet her early and help. She smiled at the thought of Nick in an apron and turned on the radio.

  Last night had been as close to perfect as a date could have gone. After she brought both of their raging libidos to an abrupt halt, she had been worried that she had effectively ended their evening also. Instead, he had surprised her again by offering to teach her ballroom dancing.

  The man had serious skills. He had effortlessly guided her with a fluid gracefulness that a man his size should not possess. Nick had twirled her around the barn like a princess at the ball with him as her prince. Becca had lost herself in his strong arms and chiseled body, and by the time the night ended, she had been breathless more due to his proximity than the dancing.

  Becca turned up the music and started to dance around the kitchen. She closed her eyes and glided around the room lost in the memory of his strong body molded against her.

  The sound of laughter brought her out of her daydream. She smiled and opened her eyes as a blush spread over her cheeks from being caught. When she turned toward the door expecting to see Nick, her face instantly sobered when she saw Tommy Pughen standing in the doorway.

  “Tommy, what are you doing back here? Why didn’t you yell for me from out front?”

  Becca cautiously watched him stalk toward her. There was something different in the way he was smiling at her. They had been friends since high school, and he never did seem to get over the crush he had had on her. Even though she had politely turned him down more times that she could remember, there was never any indication that it was anything more than a harmless infatuation. She honestly didn’t think Tommy would hurt her, but that thought didn’t seem to help alleviate the uneasy feeling that was growing inside of her. Being alone with him where no one could see them, for some reason, was making her nervous.

  “I did yell for you.” He shrugged. “Guess you couldn’t hear me over the music.” He came closer, and her eyes went to a new tattoo of a snake winding up his neck. It made her shudder. She hated snakes, and even one made of ink made her skin crawl.

  “If you want something the shop isn’t open yet.”

  “The door was open. I thought it was an invitation.” He leered at her and reached out grabbing her wrist. “You know what I want. It’s time you give up the act and finally say yes.”

  Becca tried to pull her arm free of his grasp, which only resulted in him tightening his hold on her. “Tommy, let go. You’re hurting me.”

  “Shut up, bitch. I bet you like it when it hurts.” He laughed at his own words, and the sound made the hairs on her neck stand on end.

  Becca could feel her panic quickly rising. If she yelled for help, no one would hear her, and there wasn’t anything in reach that she could grab as a weapon. She tried again to pull at her arm and hoped she could talk some sense into him. “We’re just friends, Tommy, you know that. We’ve always been friends. So why don’t you let go before this goes too far and we can remain friends.”

  He glared at her as his face turned red with anger. “Enough of the bullshit! You’ve been cock-teasing me for years. So, quit feeding me your hard-to-get crap and admit you want it, too. One way or another, I’m going to have you. I don’t give a fuck if you are willing.”

  This can’t be happening! Becca frantically tried to pull away as he reached out to grab her chin. She jerked her head away from his grasp and stopped when she heard Nick’s low voice coming from the doorway.

  “Let her go.”

  Becca wondered how Nick could sound so calm when she could see the anger billowing off him. His fists were coiled. The muscles in his jaw jumped, and his entire body was rigid. The only movement was his eyes as he watched Tommy with a predatory glare that she thought only animals could have.

  Tommy turned his head. “Who the fuck are you? Get lost.”

  “You have one more chance to let her go. I suggest you take it.”

  Tommy sized up Nick and gave a grunt. “Fuck off. This is between me and her.”

  When Tommy had turned back around to face her, Nick had moved so fast Becca could barely register what had happened. One minute Tommy was standing in front of her and the next he was on his knees. Nick had Tommy’s free arm twisted high up his back while the other had a grip on his shoulder. Becca saw the pain register in Tommy’s eyes as Nick put more pressure on his arm. Nick’s voice was still low and calm when he warned him again.

  “Now, let her arm go, or I’ll break yours.”

  Tommy released his hold, and Becca stepped back rubbing her wrist and arm. His grip had been so tight that there were red marks and what she suspected a bruise starting to develop.

  Nick suddenly grabbed Tommy’s shirt pulling him to his feet and whipped him around to wrap his hand around his neck. Becca gasped when she realized Nick was applying so much pressure that Tommy wasn’t able to breathe. He was clawing at Nick’s arm trying to release his hold.

  Becca needed to stop him. Nick was seriously pissed, and she needed to end this before he hurt Tommy. “Nick, don’t. I’m ok.”

  Nothing.

  “Nick, please, let him go.”

  That time her words seemed to sink in, and Nick slowly let go of Tommy’s neck. As soon as he was free, Tommy bent over trying to get as much air into his lungs as he could.

  Before he could fully recover, Nick twisted Tommy’s arm behind his back again and walked him in the direction of the door. Becca followed behind listening to Nick’s threatening words. There wasn’t a doubt in her mind that he meant what he was saying, and she hoped Tommy would get the hint.

  “If I ever see you around here or Becca again, I won’t stop next time. Do you understand?” Nick let go of Tommy’s arm and pushed him the last few feet to the shop entrance.

  Tommy pushed the door open and stopped to turn back around. He looked back and forth between Nick and her before settling on Nick. “I don’t know who the fuck you are, but what I understand is that you just made a big fucking mistake.”

  ****

  Nick watched the door close. The asshole should be running—fast. Instead he was pressing his luck by standing outside the door dialing his cell phone. He was actually making a phone call while Nick stood there and watched. It took every bit of his control to not walk out there and rip him apart limb to limb. That son-of-a-bitch had had his hands on Becca, and for that he wanted to make sure he would never do it again.

  Becca came around to his field of vision and hugged him. He could feel her shaking as she clung to him.

  Nick wrapped his arms around her. “Are you ok? Did he hurt you?”

  She shook her head against his chest. “I’m ok, just a little shaken.”

  He reached for her shoulder
s and gently pushed her back to look at her. Nick scanned her body and started running his hands down her arms. “Did he hurt you, Angel? Did he touch you anywhere else? What happened before I got here?”

  Becca flinched when his hand reached her wrist. He looked down and gently turned it over to inspect her arm. His anger came flaring back when he saw the marks.“That son-of-a-bitch. I’m going to…”

  Becca put her other hand to his chest to stop him. “Nick, I’m fine. Really. He’s basically harmless.”

  Nick barked the word back at her. “Harmless? You call those marks on your arm harmless?” Nick didn’t want to think of what could have happened if he was a few minutes later. There was nothing harmless in what that scum was intending to do to her.

  “Nick, please. He didn’t do anything else. He’s had a thing for me since high school. I used to stick up for him when he was being bullied and pushed around. I don’t know what got in to him. He’s never acted like that before. Maybe turning him down for so long finally made him crack.”

  Nick looked down at Becca smiling her biggest smile. She was trying to make light of the situation and get him to calm down.

  Yeah, that’s not fucking happening. The way that scumbag was looking at her had him itching to pound on his face until he couldn’t look at anything again.

  Becca’s face pleaded with him to let it go, and for now he would let her think he did. “As long as you are sure you are ok. But promise me you will be more careful around him.”

  She hugged him again and said, “I will. I’m partially to blame for all of this anyway. I left the door unlocked for you and didn’t even think about being here alone this early.”

  Nick’s body stiffened at her blaming herself for that bastard’s actions. “It was not your fault. Just because the door was open doesn’t mean it was invitation for him to go after you like that.”

  Becca took a step back and lifted an eyebrow at him. “That’s a little funny that you said that because that’s what he said about coming back in the kitchen. He said he thought it was an invitation.”

  Nick’s voice got dangerously low, the images of what could have happened were still vivid in his mind. “No, it’s not funny. He could have done a hell of a lot more to you if I didn’t show up when I did.”

  “But you did, and after the way you handled it, I’m sure he won’t be back anytime soon.”

  Nick wasn’t as sure as she was about that. “What’s his name? You said you went to school with him?”

  “Tommy Pughen. He grew up here and left after graduation. He just moved back about a year ago. The rumor was that he was in jail while he was gone, but nobody really knows where he was or what happened.” Becca shrugged. She leaned into him and angled her head up to bat her eyelashes in his direction. “Thank you for coming to my rescue. You’re my hero.” She ran her tongue over her lips and made small circles on his chest with her fingers. In a breathy whisper she asked, “How can I ever repay you?”

  Nick groaned and put his hands on her ass to pull her into him. He heard her intake of breath as he pushed his pelvis into hers. Leaning down, he whispered into her ear. “If you keep teasing me like that I’m going to show you what a hero deserves as payment.”

  He felt a shudder go through her, and he kissed her lightly on the forehead before slapping her butt cheek. “Now head back into that kitchen before your little attempt at a diversion gets you in a whole mess of trouble.” He couldn’t help but laugh when she moved her lips to form an “O”.

  He let her go and nodded his head in the direction of the back. “I’ll be right there. I need to make a quick phone call.”

  Nick smiled as she nodded and laughed her way in to the kitchen. Turning to the door, he walked outside. Tommy wasn’t standing on the sidewalk anymore. Nick looked around and finally spotted him getting into a car down the street. Taking out his cell phone, he zoomed in the camera and took a picture. He went back into the bakery and sent the picture to Todd, adding his name and what little information he had. He wanted a full rundown on him. Nick’s gut was telling him that this Tommy guy wasn’t going to stay away, and he wanted to know everything he could about him. His instincts were screaming that he was trouble.

  Nick put his phone away and smiled again when he heard Becca singing from the kitchen. He was just going to have to stay close to her to make sure she was safe.

  Chapter Eleven

  Becca walked through her apartment to the refrigerator. She opened the door, and her stomach rumbled in frustration at the empty shelves. She needed to add grocery shopping to her to-do list for tomorrow. Sunday was the one day the bakery was closed, and it was usually spent running errands. She needed to take a quick run out to the farm house, too. She hadn’t been there all week, and she wanted to make sure everything was still intact. Since Nick arrived it seemed that she hadn’t been able to focus on anything.

  Nick had spent the rest of the week at the shop. He was there the minute she opened and stayed until she locked up for the night. He even walked her to her apartment door after closing and didn’t leave until he heard the click of it being locked.

  He admitted to having a background check done on Tommy since the “incident”. It turned out he did spend time in jail and had a long list of convictions including theft, assault, and multiple drug charges. Although Nick’s constant mothering and joined-at-her-hip attitude proved to be annoying at times, it made her heart swell knowing he was worried about her. And after she heard the list, a part of her was glad he stayed close.

  Tomorrow would be the first time he wouldn’t be spending the day with her. She was going to miss him. He was the first person she saw each morning and the last person she talked to each night. Before going to bed, he would call or text her to wish her sweet dreams. She liked being his last thought for the day, even though she knew that a part of the attentiveness was him just checking on her. Of course, that didn’t stop her from giggling into the pillow like a silly teenager after she would hear from him.

  Sigh.

  Nick had her all starry-eyed like a schoolgirl with a crush. She was daydreaming, applying lip gloss at least ten times a day, and when he lent her his jacket she had worn it like she was the prom queen wearing the trophy of her quarterback boyfriend. Yep, she had officially regressed to a sixteen year old girl. She was so drawing the line at doodling his name on her books, though. The minute she started doing that, she was just going to have to send herself to her room and take away TV for a week. It was for her own good, after all.

  If she liked him so much, what the heck was she waiting for? It was Saturday night, and she was standing alone in her kitchen in her fuzzy pajamas. She should just call Nick to ask him if he wanted to have dinner. She was a grown woman—contrary to her teenage regression—and it was absolutely normal for a girl to ask a guy out, right? He had spent almost every waking minute with her for the past week and would be happy to have her call. She glanced at the clock on the wall to check the time. It was already after 8:00. He probably had already eaten, and anyway, it was getting too late to extend the offer. She’d do it some other night.

  Well, Becca, you talked yourself right out of that in record time. Chicken shit.

  Becca grabbed her cell phone off the counter. It looked like it was going to be delivery for one and a movie for her Saturday night excitement. As she was scrolling through her contacts for her favorite pizza joint, the icon for a text message popped up on the screen. She smiled when she saw it was Nick with a one word text.

  Hungry?

  The man was a mind reader or just had perfect timing. She texted back.

  Starving. What do you have in mind?

  The message had barely sent when she heard a knock at the door. She looked at the door, back to her cell and then back to the door. It couldn’t be him, could it? She walked over and peeped through the hole. Becca shook her head when she saw his blue eyes winking back from the hallway. Awfully sure of himself, wasn’t he? She looked down at her tank, bottoms, a
nd slippers. Could he at least have given her a five minute warning to put on something more appropriate?

  She opened the door. He had a box of pizza in one hand and a six-pack of bottlenecks in the other. Her stomach made another rumbling sound when she took in the smell of pepperoni. The man was a mind reader, and by the always present smug smile on his face he knew as much.

  She crossed her arms. “What if I said I wasn’t hungry?”

  He leaned down and gave her a quick kiss on the lips. “Then you could have had a beer while keeping me company as I ate.”

  She watched as he walked over to the couch and placed the pizza and beer on the coffee table. He just walked in and sat down like he belonged and had been there a hundred times already. It was the first time he was in her apartment, and he seemed perfectly comfortable and relaxed. Even the kiss at the door seemed “normal”, as if they had been together for years.

  Becca slowly closed the door as her thoughts started to run wild in her head. Were they together? Technically they only had one date and well now, pizza. Did that mean they were dating? They had spent every day together. Did that count? That kiss was the first kiss on the lips since the barn. What exactlydid that mean? Was he expecting something more now that he was here?

  Ugh! She was over-thinking this way too much.

  Did it really matter what they were? A few minutes ago she was mentally whining about how she was going to miss him and that she was hungry. And as if her fairy godmother waved her magic wand, he suddenly appeared offering his company and pizza. What more could a girl ask for?

  She went to the cabinet for some plates and then joined him on the couch. “You know you could have at least given me enough time to change out of my pajamas.”

  Nick chuckled. “And miss seeing those pants? Not a chance.”

  Becca glanced down at her favorite loungewear. The pajamas were covered with stressed out cartoon cats demanding their morning coffee. They accurately expressed how she felt in the a.m. before she got her cup of java. “I know you aren’t making fun of my frazzled felines.”