Ties That Bind

by Neeny Boucher

  “You just quit,” he retorted. “In front of everyone… you just quit. I don’t blame you. Right now, I couldn’t give a fuck about this town and anyone in it, but are you going to quit on me too?”

  Christina cringed. Riley was a lot of things, but he wasn’t stupid, and he was more insightful at times than she was. She may not have expressed her doubts to him about their relationship, but she didn’t have to. He felt them.

  He loved her without reservation, but she always put conditions on them and it was unfair. She wouldn’t accept a relationship where the other person might leave without warning due to some imaginary infraction. Riley deserved the same surety.

  “No,” Christina said, shaking her head for emphasis. “I’m not quitting on you. I’m never quitting on you ever again and that’s not what this is about.”

  “Maybe you should?” Riley countered. “You’re not the dark and twisty one in our relationship, Dina. You never have been. I am. You were the light, my light. Whatever darkness you have inside you, I put it there.”

  He waved his hands at his clothing. “I mean look at me, Dina. I’m a fuck up. I’m dangerous. Your mother was right about me. She knew. I should’ve let you go. I should’ve never gone near you in the first place and you should keep as far away from me as possible.”

  Riley’s words hurt so badly that Christina found it difficult to breathe. This was his pattern: he’d explode and then there would be a grueling self-analysis before he found his equilibrium. She’d rather take a hundred beatings from Beaumont and Palmer than watch Riley crucify himself in front of her.

  Stepping closer to Riley, Christina grabbed his hand. “No. Mom wasn’t right about you and it wasn’t her decision to make. We fell in love and changed each other. That’s life. You’re not a fuck up, and even if you are, you’re my fuck up.”

  He pulled a face and Christina grimaced. “Okay,” she grinned, “that came out wrong. Maybe we’re both fuck ups? And we can either be fucked up together, or we can try not to be. You always tell me I shouldn’t worry about what people think and to reject society’s expectations,” she sighed. “Funny, ‘cause it seems to me we’re living up, or in our case, ‘down’, to what people think of us. We have the chance to turn this around. We’ve been forced to revisit our past and maybe this time, we can get it right, but not if you beat those creeps to death. There’s no coming back from that.”

  Riley’s face was impassive, but she had his attention. For once, she had the chance to get him to see her point of view. She prayed to the universe that she didn’t blow it because he didn’t like ultimatums, no matter how reasonably they were couched.

  “You have two options, baby,” Christina whispered. “Love or revenge? You can’t have both. You have to choose one. If it’s revenge, they’ll take you away from me. There will be no house, no kids, and no future. We’ll do our date nights in prison.”

  The corner of Riley’s mouth quirked up and she smiled in response, relaxing for just a moment. He sighed, clenched his hands into fists, and then dropped them to his sides. “I have to leave, Dina. I have to go away and finish what I’m doing. If I could stay, I would, but I can’t concentrate. I was going to tell you tomorrow. I don’t want to leave you here alone… again and with a steaming pile of shit.”

  Damn relaxation. Christina’s heart sank at thought of being left here alone and without him. The hits just kept on coming and she was exhausted. So long as the ‘hits’ were figurative and not literal, however, she would suck it up, and deal. “How long?” She asked in a small voice.

  Riley shrugged. “Six weeks? Maybe seven? But I want us to go away together first.”

  Although she didn’t want to, Christina took a deep breath, nodding her head in agreement. “Okay. I’ll come with you, but you have to make your choice. I want to hear you say the words. Love or revenge?”

  Riley sighed exaggeratedly, rolling his eyes. “As if that’s even a choice, but if you want me to say the words… it’s love. I choose you, every time.”

  Christina tried to smile, but her face contorted, tears spilling from her eyes. She wiped them quickly away, but not fast enough. Riley used his thumb to trace her tears, whispering: “It’s you. It’s always been you. How can you doubt that?”

  He threw his arm around her shoulder and leaned down, kissing her gently on the mouth. The touch of his lips was like balm to her emotions and she kissed him back, but he pulled away. “There’s… just something I have to do,” Riley murmured against her lips. “For my own peace of mind…”

  Christina’s eyes opened wide and she slowly shook her head. He was unbelievable. What was he trying to do? Find a loophole between love and revenge?

  Riley gave her his panty-dropping killer smile. “Trust me,” he winked. “I’ve listened to everything you’ve had to say, honey, and for you, it made a lot of sense… which was a nice surprise.”

  Christina scowled. Whenever someone said ‘trust me’ it was usually a good indicator that one shouldn’t. Where Riley was concerned, this went double. “Riley,” she warned, but he ignored her, sauntering off toward Beaumont and Palmer.

  There was no way Christina was leaving this in Riley’s dangerous hands. She ignored the stones digging into her feet and the wary looks of people around them. She jogged until she caught up to him, grabbing hold of one of his hands. Riley squeezed it gently, pulling her along with him until they stood in front of Beaumont and Palmer.

  The two men were on their feet, standing with Steven, Jed, Andy, and the giant bouncer, Manu. Palmer flinched when he saw Riley, putting his hands up in submission. “We don’t want any more trouble,” Palmer blurted. “We won’t tell anyone. Just let us go and leave us alone, man.”

  In comparison to Beaumont, Palmer had got off lightly. As she looked at Beaumont’s beaten face, she wished she was anywhere else, but she refused to leave Riley’s side. “You’re a fucking psycho!” Beaumont spat. “You hear that, Steven? Your brother’s a fucking psycho. I expected shit like this from him, but not you.”

  “Glad to disappoint you, Carl” Steven deadpanned. “And if I were you, I’d keep my mouth shut.” Steven’s eyes were midnight blue in this light, but there was a hard glint in them that she’d never seen before.

  Beaumont snarled at Palmer. “You might want to let this go, but I’m not. If they think, just because they’re Rileys, that they can do anything in this town, they’re mistaken. Someone’s going to pay. I’m going to make sure of it.”

  Christina wondered if Beaumont had a death wish or if he was just stupid? Deliberating, she settled for stupid. She put a warning arm on a tense Riley, casting nervous looks at Steven, but it felt like time had stopped.

  Shaking his head, Riley gave a chilling smile. “You’re going to leave here. I’m giving you twenty-four hours. That’s it. The only reason you’re not dead is because she doesn’t want that. I don’t want her to have to ever see your faces again and if I see you? I’m not just going to hurt you. Do you understand?”

  Christina’s gulp was audible in the deathly silence that followed Riley’s statement. She tried to appear cool and neutral, but inside she was shaking like Jell-O. They were so far over the legal line that the prison bus had seats reserved with their names on it.

  “This is bullshit!” Beaumont bellowed, but panic settled on his bruised and battered features. “We’ve taken our beating. Let’s call it even. We won’t tell anyone, but you can’t make us leave town. This is our home!”

  A part of Christina felt sorry for them. They were small town ‘heroes’; Shanwick, the extent of their life experience. They were the sum total of their history and it was all located here.

  “Where are we supposed to go?” Palmer blurted. “We’re sorry. Okay? We are.” He looked broken inside and for a moment, Christina felt compassion, until he turned to her. “We’re sorry, Dina, we really are.”

  Christina stepped back, but Riley held onto her. “You don’t get to call her that!” Riley snarled. “After what you
did, you don’t speak to her. Don’t even look at her.”

  Palmer put his head down, nodding, but there was still life left in Beaumont. “Are you going to let him do this, Steven? Drive us away? Come on, we’ve known each other for years. We’ve been friends!”

  Steven folded his arms and gave his brother a hard stare. Everything was on a knife-edge, as Steven remained silent, with the group collectively holding their breaths. Finally, Steven shook his head. “You heard my brother. The clock is ticking. You’ve got twenty-four hours and if you’re still here when time’s up, I’m going to help him bury your bodies.”

  Christina felt the shock of Steven’s statement throughout her entire being. She had expected Steven to play conciliator, finding a peaceful resolution to the conflict before them. He was one of the most principled people she had ever met and she could only imagine what his support for Riley must have cost him.

  Surveying the damage around her, Christina felt resolved to chart a different course. Anger, fear, and violence didn’t solve anything. It perpetuated hateful cycles, tainting everything, and everyone.

  Tonight had been a test for both of them and everything that could have possibly risen to the surface, had done so. It had exposed weaknesses and fault-lines, ripping open old wounds that they’d tried to mask. She felt they’d been baptized by fire, but come out the other side stronger.

  While there were more hurdles to overcome, Christina felt strangely positive. A tiny piece of their complicated past had been laid to rest, setting the platform for something new. This time, she was determined to build it around love and trust without fear and doubt.

  Tapping Riley on the arm, she motioned with her head. “Let’s get your clothes and go home.” Looking at his hands, she scowled. “We need to wash those and figure out what we’re going to do.”

  “Okay,” Riley nodded. “I’ve been meaning to ask, where are your shoes?”

  Christina pursed her lips. “I threw one at Mason and dropped the other one… somewhere… in the chase after you.”

  Riley laughed, shaking his head in disbelief. “You threw your shoes at Mason?”

  “I threw one shoe at Mason,” Christina corrected. “And we need to talk about Mason. In fact, we need to talk about a lot of things.”

  Straightening herself up, Christina stared into Riley’s eyes. “I need to say, I don’t like what you did. If you ever feel the need to beat people up on my behalf, don’t. Unless, of course, it’s Mason… he might be a good outlet for your anger management issues.”

  Riley slung an arm around her shoulders, kissing her on the temple. “We can talk about whatever you want. We’ve got forever, right?”

  Christina hugged him tight around the waist and grinned. Yes. They did have forever. She was fully committed.

  Chapter Fourteen: Bend

  Riley, Shanwick, The Present, Monday, November 12, 2012

  Riley woke to gentle kisses and silken hair trailing across his skin. Her lips grazed his forehead, eyelids, cheeks, and she nuzzled his chin, making him stir. It was early morning and he kept his eyes closed, savoring her exquisite torture in the place between dreams and reality.

  Christina planted lingering kisses on his neck and collarbone, running her hands down his chest to his nipples. He sucked in a breath as her fingers pinched his nipples, hard enough to be on the edge of pain. As her mouth replaced her fingers, Riley groaned, arching his back toward her.

  All pretense at sleep disappeared and he ran his fingers through her hair. As her lips and tongue tracked down his stomach, he tensed. He closed his eyes, whispering her name as her lush mouth wrapped around him and her hands held his balls.

  Riley was tempted to let her beautiful mouth take him, but he had other plans. Grabbing Christina, he rolled her over and lay on top of her. Her eyes were glinting with amusement and open invitation, one he was ready to accept.

  He stifled her giggles with a kiss because they had to be quiet. They were resident in the well-populated, nosy Martin Household, and sometimes it felt like they were having almost public sex. Usually, these living arrangements annoyed him, but he’d come to appreciate the intimacy and excitement that possibly being caught brought to their sex-life.

  Riley rested himself on his elbows and opened her mouth with his tongue. He could taste himself on her and it drove him wild. He put as much passion as he could into his kiss, their tongues dancing, as his hands roamed her body.

  He traced his fingers along her warm skin, watching her squirm and wiggle. It was like leaving a trail of desire over her with promises yet to come, ones he aimed to make good on. He loved how responsive her body was; it always knew she belonged to him. It was her mind that needed persuading.

  Christina bit her bottom lip and closed her eyes, as his hands found her boobs. He pinched her nipples, making her cry out. He laughed quietly, as she clapped a hand over her mouth to cover the noise.

  Riley bent his head to her breasts, sucking one into his mouth and then the other, before sitting back on his haunches. Staring down at a confused Christina, Riley grinned, grabbing her legs. He reached for a condom, but she stopped him. “I want all of you,” she whispered, stunning him, and making him grin like a lunatic.

  He put her legs over his shoulders and watched realization dawn on her face. He moved forward entering her, making her gasp and him hiss in unison. This was one of his favorite positions: it was intimate and he was in control. It restricted her movements, leaving her at his mercy, and he could watch every emotion in her eyes and face.

  Riley held still inside her, even though everything was screaming at him to move. He stared into her glazed eyes, watching her skin flush, and her mouth open. She put her hands on his chest, rubbing his nipples, and he couldn’t hold back any longer.

  He gently bit her bottom lip, before he began to move in slow, deep thrusts. He loved the feeling of her underneath him and the sensation of being joined to his other half. She whispered his name: part love confession, part plea, and it took all his self-control to hold back.

  Riley picked up the pace, mesmerized by her bottom lip moving in time to his thrusts. There were times when language was inadequate to describe how much he loved her and this was one of them. He kissed her lips as he moved, her hand clutching the back of his neck, holding him to her.

  Grabbing one of her feet, Riley put her toes in his mouth and gently nibbled on them. Christina cried out, putting her hands over her face, simultaneously begging him to both ‘stop’ and ‘don’t stop’. She was notoriously ticklish on her feet, trying to squirm away from him, but couldn’t because she was trapped beneath him.

  Riley’s pace was relentless and sweat trickled down his face, neck, and back. Christina’s face was bright red and she was panting, trying to hold off, but he knew she was close. “Now?” he growled and when she nodded, he moved as fast as he could.

  He felt the heat spread out from his spine and the pressure build in his cock. In the bedroom, ‘Ladies first’ was his motto and as Christina’s legs began to shake, he knew he hadn’t broken his word. As her muscles gripped him, Riley’s control broke. He grabbed her face, locked his lips on hers, and came, shuddering inside her.

  Riley rested on his elbows, panting and grinning at her. “Good morning,” Christina giggled. She looked alive, vital, even with hair stuck to her face.

  Her good humor was contagious and he stroked her hair away from her forehead, drinking the sight of her in. “It is a good morning,” Riley agreed. “And after that, I think it might be the best morning ever. Well,” he grinned, “at least until tomorrow morning.”

  Planting a kiss on her nose, Riley traced some of her sweat with his fingers, rubbing them together, and waving them in victory. Christina roared with laughter, her body shaking underneath him and making him curse at the commitments he had to attend elsewhere. Pushing him off her, Christina rolled on top of him and gave him a passionate kiss.

  “You, mister,” she murmured, “are going to be late. Time to hit the
shower. I’m going first and then I’m getting you breakfast.”

  Riley couldn’t keep the smirk off his face. “It was worth it and if we weren’t in a hurry, I would’ve punished you more.”

  Christina turned, giving her vixen smile. “You’re definitely worth it and that isn’t a punishment.” She threw her robe on, blew him a kiss, and left the room.

  Riley lay back on the bed with his hands under his head, silently thanking the universe for giving Christina back to him. She’d never been afraid of his demons. She alternately silenced them or danced in challenge, encouraging him to lay them to rest.

  He just hoped it was enough to keep her when they were all exposed. Riley pushed his concerns away, focusing on the positives. In the aftermath of Saturday night, their relationship had matured into solid bedrock.

  Christina had soothed him, body and soul, tending his wounded hands and spirit with gentleness. It was as if she believed her tenderness could heal him and eradicate the memory of the violence he’d exposed her to. Although he’d tried to push her away, for fear his fatal flaws might taint her, she’d been resolute.

  As had her fierce defense of him. He’d watched in awe as she’d dragged people out of bed on a Sunday morning, refusing to take no for an answer, organizing a settlement with those two assholes, ensuring any legal fallout was mitigated. Riley didn’t agree with her course of action, but he’d gone along with it because it was important to her.

  He understood she was trying to protect him in the ways she knew how. Similarly, he’d spent Sunday ensuring Christina was protected when he was away. His mind winced at the thought: by this time next week, he’d be gone and it was out of his control.

  Riley had to put his trust and faith in other people, something he hated. Instead, he’d focused on what he could influence, seeking assurances from Steven, Jed, Andy, and Johnny that they would take care of Christina in his absence. He’d also taken it upon himself to visit Bonnie and Mandy.