by Lola StVil
“Rosy had left a message for each of us. Her final message was to Wyatt. She told him that she knew he was going to be a complete asshole now that she wasn’t there to rein him in. She said she knew that he would walk around being sullen, dark, and pretty much updatable. And because of that, she would take it upon herself to make sure he had a soul mate.
“She said, ‘I’ll send her to you and you’ll know it’s her because she will make you want to find your joy again. She will make you run to the damn kitchen and cook her all these amazing meals you thought you’d never make again. She’ll help you move on. She’s gonna love you without fail and she’ll bring your joy back to you. When you find her, know that she was my gift to you.’”
Mrs. Hunter has tears in her eyes. I did too. She places her hand under my chin and lifts my head up so that she can look into my face.
“It seems, at least to Wyatt, Rose has delivered on her promise. Now, I need to know, how do you feel about my son?”
Today was supposed to be one of the worst days of my life. I was supposed to go see my baby sister’s grave and stand there as the reality of her death ripped my fucking heart apart. I was supposed to find the strength to stand beside my mom as grief swallowed her whole. I was dreading it with every fiber in me. But my girl turned it around for me. Yes, it was hard to stand in front of Rose’s grave but not nearly as hard as it would have been without her.
After we are done at the grave site, we get back in the car. The temperature dropped since we’ve been here, and the sky is murky. The scent of rain is now in the air but it doesn’t dampen the afternoon at all. We head to Rose’s favorite restaurant, where Winter meets most of my family. She suddenly finds herself in a sea of strangers, yet she holds her own and managed to charm the room. My father, Joe, loves her at first sight. He takes me aside and says, “Son, anyone who looks like that, yet isn’t too highbrow to eat ribs with her fingers, is a keeper.”
I don’t want to be rude and leave her alone since she just met these people, but she leans over to me and says, “I’m good. Go, and hang with your brothers. Also if we don’t work out, I’m letting you know now, I am not above asking any of your three brothers out. Make that four brothers, if Logan gets back in the country. They are all too damn hot. In fact, I might still ask them out,” she jokes.
“Sorry, you’re stuck with me,” I remind her. “Be right back,” I promise as I give her a quick kiss. I talk with my brother for a while and it feels so good to be in the same room with people who knew Rose. I turn a little while later to find that Winter has been snatched up by Shelby.
Shelby’s telling her the “who’s who” in the family tree (the Shelby scandal edition). I would have saved her but in the end, Shelby is more annoying than hurtful. The entire afternoon is filled with stories and laughter. Winter helps make it so that Rose’s birthday isn’t a funeral, it’s an outright celebration. And God knows, I love her for that.
***
When we get back home, I’m still amazed at how she turned my day around. She managed to make me focus on the joy of having had Rose in my life instead of the sadness. My dad loved her, and my mom has already warned me that if I hurt her, she’ll make my life hell. This girl is everything I want and everything I ever needed.
“Wyatt, you okay?” she asks as she catches me looking off in the distance.
“I am more than okay. I’m happy. And I don’t think that would have happened had it not been for you. I really had a great time today. I mean there were some hard moments but all in all, it was great,” I reply as I wrap my arm around her waist.
“Me too. And your mom is the best,” she says, leaning in closer.
“I saw you two talking, anything I should know?” I ask.
“She saw the video of me and my ex.”
“What? Damn her, I—”
“It’s okay. At first I was livid but she didn’t judge me—at all,” she says.
“That’s not the point, why was she looking in the first place?” I snap.
“Because she’s mother to five guys who are well off, kind, and easy on the eyes. I get it.”
“You’re giving her a pass,” I scold.
“Honey, all five of her sons have daily contact with guns and bullets. She needs a pass. And besides, she really was cool about it. She wanted to make sure I didn’t let the past get in the way of the present. It’s fine.”
“Yeah, I guess,” I mumble reluctantly.
“I hope you don’t mind; I asked her about the cooking thing,” she adds.
“And she told you about Rose’s last meal,” I conclude.
“Yeah but don’t be mad. I’m glad I know. And I am honored to be the girl you cook for. And Rose was a lucky girl to be so loved by so many people.”
“She’s not the only one who is loved. I can’t get enough of you, babe,” I reply, then lean in and kiss her firmly. She groans and says she has to make a call and so I’m forced to let her go. She exits out to the living room and I change into a pair of jeans. I think about how I want to spend the rest of today—inside her.
God, I have been trying to hold myself back, but shit, I want to fuck her so bad, it’s messing with my mind. It’s not just about getting laid, though. There’s a part of her she hides from me and I want in. I want to be inside her as far as I can go. And honestly, judging from the skillful and mind-blowing blowjob she gave me, I know making love to her will top anything I’ve ever experienced.
There have been many times where I walk past her and I all I want to do is bend her over the furniture, pry her legs apart, and impale her from behind. I’ve wanted to grab a fistful of her gorgeous hair and yank on it as my dick thrusts into her slippery folds. I would give anything, any fucking thing to have her writhing, wet, and whimpering in my arms.
That would be the beginning: fucking like two feral animals in heat. She’d think it would be over after that but she’d be wrong. The first fuck would be to tame the lust that’s been growing since I first met her. It’s the monster created by my cock, the beast that can only be tamed by fucking her until she taps out from exhaustion. When that’s over, I could then start to think clearly. I could take my time and make love to her. This time we’d go slowly, I’d explore her fully, from her earlobe to the small of her back, down to her toes.
Shit, I must have stayed on that thought too long because now my dick wants her and it’s expanding to let me know that it’s fucking tired of waiting. But when she comes back into the bedroom, I can tell by the look on her face, sex is the last thing on her mind. She looks pissed off and ready to kill someone.
“What happened?” I ask.
“I just got off the phone with the company that owns the building the center is in. They won’t renew our lease.”
“Why the hell not?” I demand.
“They think the Street Kings are going to keep coming back, because they have a personal gripe with us, so they would rather rent it out to someone else. Shit! It’s one thing to have to look for funding to repair the place but now we have to find a whole new place? Damn! These kids are so used to being shuffled around, I was supposed to help them get something stable and instead I just…” She sighs deeply and hangs her head.
“Okay, I have had enough of this. Really, I’m done with this shit. Get your jacket. We’re going out,” I inform her.
“What are you talking about?”
“I have been wanting to help you since this thing started and you keep fighting me on it.”
“Wyatt, please. I told you I can’t take your money.”
“Yeah, I heard you. Get your jacket. Let’s go,” I order as march towards the door.
“It’s gonna rain soon,” she protests.
“You’ll be fine. Move it,” I instruct.
She’s asking where we are going and what’s happening but I don’t reply. We get in the car and drive about fifteen minutes away from the house. I park in front of a newly renovated red brick three-story building.
“What are
we doing here?” she asks.
“Get out of the car and come take a look,” I reply as I open her car door for her. She gets out and we walk up the front steps. I use my key and enter.
“This is your place?” she asks.
“Yeah, it’s the one Rose left for me. Come in,” I reply as I take her hand and walk her through the space.
“This place is amazing,” she says.
“I’ve had multiple offers to sell but I didn’t want to do that,” I admit.
“That makes sense. Rose wanted you to have it.”
“Yes, and now I know exactly what I’m going to do with it.”
“You are gonna rent it out—if that’s why you brought me here, I’m sorry, honey, the center can’t afford this place. In fact, I don’t think we can afford the bagels in the shop down the street from here.” She laughs.
“I’m not renting it out to you, I’m giving it to you.”
Her jaw drops, she shakes her head “No” about a million times and gets back into the car. Jesus that woman can be difficult. I get back in the car with her.
“Winter—”
“No. This house is worth millions.”
“It’s not being used. I don’t want strangers in it, so I won’t rent it out. I already have a house. So, what’s the harm?” I ask.
“It’s yours. I can’t just come and take it like that. It’s not right. I don’t want to…you have given me so much, Wyatt. I can figure this out for myself.”
“So, you are saying that you are willing to pass up this place?” I ask in disbelief.
“I can’t have you saving me every five minutes. This isn’t some storybook romance. Just because you have money doesn’t mean that I have to take from you.”
“You are not taking, I am offering,” I counter.
“It doesn’t matter. The answer is no.”
“You are making this so much harder than it has to be. Rose would have been happy knowing her house was going to help kids who need it. She would have wanted this. I know it.”
“Okay, maybe she would have. But…Wyatt, you can’t just make everything better with money.”
“ARGH! That is not what I’m trying to do. Why is it so hard for you to just accept some help? What would be so fucking wrong with saving you from this awful situation?”
“No! I can figure things out myself,” she barks.
“You are not in this by yourself. I don’t know how many ways I have to say that in order to get through to you. It’s just us here, you and me. If I have a way to solve our problem, then what’s so wrong about using it?”
“Wyatt, that is easily a five-million-dollar piece of property.”
“I’m not giving it to you so you can host fancy dinner parties and drink cocktails with the girls. This will be your new center. The place where hundreds of foster kids can go for help with schoolwork, future job training, whatever they need. Why wouldn’t I want to be a part of that?”
“Wyatt, it’s great that you want to be a part of this. You can speak in front of them once a month or help with the sports classes, whatever. But you can’t just give away your house.”
“Because that would mean we are really a couple and that freaks you out,” I reason angrily.
“No, that’s not it. Honey, you’ve saved me from so much already…” she says as she places her hand on the side of my face. I take that hand and bring it to my lips. I kiss her palm. I sigh and look into my girl’s eyes.
“Babe, I can’t save you from the thing that really hurt you. I can’t take back what your ex did to you. I can’t take back how much pain it caused and I can’t undo the moment you two met. What I can do is love you as hard as I can, and in every way that I can. Don’t say yes to my offer because you need my help, say yes because you know that I need to do this for you. And babe, this is your chance to give the kids what they truly deserve: a place they can think of as home. Let me do that for them; for you.”
“Wyatt—”
“Argh, Winter! Just say yes. It’s not that big a—”
“Wyatt.”
“I can’t believe you won’t take this offer!” I groan in frustration.
“That’s not what I was gonna say!” She shouts over me.
“Fine, then what were you going to say?” I bark.
“I love you.”
“What?” I ask, not sure I heard right.
“I love you, more than I ever thought I could love anyone.”
“Oh...”
“Is that okay?” she asks, uncertain. I place my hand behind her neck and bring her close to me. I drop my head so our foreheads meet. I swallow hard, hoping to take some of the emotion from my voice.
“Yeah, babe, that’s okay. That’s more than okay…”
***
I swear to God, it feels like I’m fucking flying through this world right now. She loves me. She fucking loves me. And she said it. I waited and she finally said it. God, I love this woman beyond reason. And as the waitress takes us to our seats for dinner, I wait until Winter isn’t looking and I text my dad:
“She said she loves me.”
He texts me back:
“She knows a good thing when she sees it; like your mom knew when she met me!”
I smile to myself, and she asks what’s funny, I tell her never mind. She reminds me that she still hasn’t accepted my offer. We sit at the table and try to hash it out. In the end, she finally agrees but only if I let her pay me rent. I agree. She asks me how much and I tell her it’s a dollar a month.
“That’s crazy! I want a real price,” she pushes as she steals a fry from my plate.
“Okay, a dollar and various sexual favors,” I reply.
“Well, now that I think we can do,” she says as she leans across the table and kisses me. Damn her lips and what they do to me.
“Are you really sure about this, Wyatt?”
“Yes, babe, I’m sure. Now eat up because you are going to need your strength tonight,” I reply suggestively. My cell rings and I know my night is ruined even before I pick it up.
“Yeah?...When?...No, that’s fine, she’ll be there tomorrow…yeah, thanks.” I hang up the phone and push the plate of barely eaten food away.
“Do you have to go into work?” she asks.
“Yes, and you have to come with me. The operation at your place is going down tomorrow night,” I grumble.
“I didn’t know it was happening this soon. I thought…”
“Yeah, me too. But Decker called in some favors and got the paperwork processed quickly. I think he feels bad about what happened to the center and wants to help,” I reply.
“Oh, okay. What happens next?” she asks, trying to hide the nervousness in her voice.
“We’ve been circulating the rumor that you went out of town to visit a relative but you will be back this week. And they are excited to get their hands on you,” I reply as my jaw tightens and my chest constricts. She places her hand on top of mine and tries to smile despite the fact that she’s terrified.
“It’s gonna be fine, right?” she asks.
“Yeah, it will be,” I reply, unable to shake the gut feeling I have. We should have found another way. The thought of things going wrong and something happening to her is almost more than I can bear.
“Hey, let’s get out of here,” I suggest, as the food looks less and less appetizing. The worry I feel is growing in the center of my chest and with every passing moment. I want to reconsider this plan. I guess Winter can read the reluctance on my face because when we get in the house, the first thing she does is try to kiss my worries away. Nice try. But even those lips can’t take my mind off the danger I’m about to put her in.
“We need to be serious here, babe. I need to let you know what’s going to happen,” I tell her as I step out of the kiss and make her sit across the counter from me.
“Okay, serious. Tell me,” she says.
“You will head over to your place before it starts to get dark so they can really
see you and know that you are back. Once inside your apartment, you are to act as if everything is fine. Just do what you normally do. My guess is they will wait until nightfall before entering. We have everything in place in the apartment one floor above yours. All the equipment is already set up. We’ll have an eye on you at all times. We just need to get them entering your apartment and reaching for their weapons. We’ll come in, take them down, and it’ll all be over.”
“Okay, just go home and do what I normally do. I got it,” she says, exhaling deeply.
“It’s okay to be nervous. It’s actually a good sign. It means you will be alert,” I assure her.
“Then consider me very alert,” she says as her eyes widen.
I shake my head as I study her. “Babe, you are doing all of this so that a little boy doesn’t have to testify. And even though you’re scared shitless you refuse to back down. I fucking love you for that.”
She smiles and lowers her eyes, suddenly shy. The longer I look at her the more I want her. My eyes glaze over with lust and the sheer exhilaration of being near her. I can practically hear her heart beat from here. I rake my eyes over the spots that I want to graze, bite, and nibble on. My breathing changes, my pulse speeds up, and my entire world narrows down to her. I am drawn to her by powers that are way beyond me. I wrap my hand around her throat and back her into the wall. She looks back at me, her eyes wide with alarm.
“You’re afraid,” I accuse.
“I am but not of you. I’m afraid of how much I want you. Wyatt…I’m ready.”
“You damn well better be, cause I’m coming in…”
I palm her ass and hoist her up onto my hips with such force, she gasps as she wraps her legs around my waist. She looks for an apology in my eyes for the brute strength I just used. There is none. I’m not sorry about shit. I’ve been denied too much and for far too long. No more waiting. No more asking. I will take what’s mine. I’ll write my name on the tender flesh of her inner thighs and on every wall of her pussy.
