by Tiffani Lynn
Suddenly he pulls out. “Scoot forward and stay like this.” As I scoot, he directs me. “A little more, a little more, that’s good.” Then he climbs up behind me and enters me again. His pace increases as he curls himself over my body, one hand in the bed to stabilize himself and one kneading my breast and rolling my nipple between his rough fingers. Our sweat-slickened skin begins to slip and slide as I draw closer to detonation.
When the buzzing in my body begins to transition into a full-blown roar, he pulls out and flips me over so we’re face-to-face. He kisses me slower this time, as he enters me, and his lips leave mine, but our eyes lock as he increases the pace, finally pounding into me. Sweat runs down his hairline and drips onto my breasts and neck. The strain in his eyes is apparent and I realize he’s waiting for me to go before him, so I slip my hand down between us and with two swirling strokes, I come with his name on my lips. It’s only seconds before he follows me over the edge and collapses half on me.
My fingers run over his sweat-slicked skin. There’s something incredibly sexy about such a virile man working himself into a sweat to please me that really turns me on.
“Let me throw this thing away,” he rumbles in my ear as he rolls away. Within a few seconds, he’s back, gathering me in his arms and positioning me so I’m lying across him like a monkey.
“Is my sweat bothering you?”
“God, no. It’s sexy to me.”
He wraps his arms around me and takes a deep breath. “I didn’t freak you out, did I?”
“With what? Hot, creative sex that ended with me looking in your eyes as we both came? Nope. Absolutely not.”
“Good to know.” He chuckles.
We lie there for quite a while before he finally confesses to being hungry. Needless to say though, we never end up watching a movie and he never goes home. The next morning, I wake up happier than I’ve ever been in my life.
Later in the day, my dad meets me for lunch. Just the two of us since Wade is having lunch with Rayann.
“So you really like this young man, do ya?”
I blush a little. “Yeah, Dad, I do. I wanted to hate him at first but he just grew on me.”
“He does seem to be a stand-up guy, and he’s good to your brother. Far as I can tell, he’s good to you too. He seems to understand you unlike anyone outside of our family, and I like that.”
“Do you think Mom would’ve liked him?”
“Are you kidding? She would’ve loved him. She knew it was going to take a strong man, in all senses of the word, to be a match for you.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Because she was so much like you.”
“I disagree. We may have the same red hair and temper, but she’s so much more than I could ever be.”
“You’re wrong. We both knew you were special, but from the minute Sam was born, you stepped up in a big way. Your mom always said she wasn’t sure she would have been as good of a sibling as you are. Raising him hasn’t been easy. She knew it was tough on you.”
“But I love him.”
“We both know that. It’s why your mom encouraged you to move away after the academy. She knew you needed to spread your wings, where you weren’t going to feel obligated to watch over your brother. Otherwise, your whole life would’ve revolved around Sam and you would’ve missed out on so much. She wanted you to be happy.”
“There was a lot I didn’t know about Mom. I should have stayed here instead of going to Colorado. I missed so much time with her.”
“No, you did exactly what she wanted you to do. She wanted you to have an adventure and live a life that made you happy. She was so proud of you, we both are. Your mom knew when the time came that you had to take responsibility for your brother, you wouldn’t even think twice about it, but she wanted you to have time for yourself. I’m just sad that it ended earlier than we thought it would.”
“Don’t be sorry, Dad. I’d do anything for you guys.”
“If you ever want to know anything about your mother, you can ask me. I enjoy talking about her. I know everyone avoids the subject, but it feels good to bring her memory out into the light.”
At the end of my lunch break, I’m feeling lighter than I have in a while. Things with Keegan are going well, my self-defense class is off to a good start, and my relationships with my dad and brother have never been better. Life is good.
Thirteen
Keegan
For a week now, I’ve been on cloud nine. This is the happiest I’ve been in my life. The gym is growing a little at a time, and between the new friends I’m making and the beautiful, sassy, sexy girlfriend, I’m no longer lonely. The only other time I was close to feeling this good was when Lou took me in. I’ll never be able to accurately describe what it’s like to go from feeling like you’re all alone in this life to having someone fight to take care of you. With Lou, I had someone who gave a shit about me. This amazing feeling that I have all the time now almost scares me. It seems to have a fragility to it that I’m not used to. I’m afraid I’ll wake up and this will all be a dream.
Brown called last weekend and is planning to move here in two weeks. Perfect timing because I’ve had some more guys sign up for personal training and boxing lessons. I’m a little surprised at the number of men in the area that are interested. I’ve even had a few women, but I’m not sure if it’s because they are man-hunting in my gym or are genuinely interested in learning to box. It won’t take much time to figure it out because boxing is so much harder than anyone expects it to be. I’ve been training a couple of guys, but I need help to do things right around here.
I sit down at my desk and review the designs for the T-shirts, and Sam comes through the office to clock out for lunch. “Hey, pal. Where’re you going to eat today?” I ask to make conversation, but I already know the answer.
“Home for sandwiches with my dad. Do you want to come?” His constant inclusive personality is another reason to love the guy.
“No, thanks. I need to submit my changes for the shirts and I have a client coming in a few minutes. See you after lunch. Tell Fred I said hello.”
At one twenty, my private session is finishing up and I realize I haven’t seen Sam return. Maybe I was too involved and I missed him. I say goodbye and head for the locker room. No one is in there. I come out and ask the guys doing pull-ups. “You guys see Sam?”
“Nah, he wasn’t here when we got here. We thought he had the day off.”
Panic sets in. Sam is on a strict schedule. It stresses him out to be late or change his schedule even a little bit. I grab my phone off my desk and call Fred.
“Hey, sorry to bug you, but I wondered if Sam has left your house yet to head back here?”
“Yes, he’s been gone almost thirty-five minutes. He’s not there?”
“No. I’ll call you back. I’m going to retrace his steps; I know the route he takes.” I hang up before he can respond, and take off out the door in a sprint, following the route I know he takes every time. I’m about halfway to Fred’s when I spot two people off the side of the road, close to the bushes. One person is on the phone and the other is lying in the grass. My stomach rolls over and I run as hard as I can until I reach them. Sam is the one in the grass. His eyes are open, but one is swelling shut and he’s obviously dazed. I look at the kid I’ve never seen before. “You better be dialing 911!” I bark.
“I am, man. I didn’t do it. I didn’t do it.” He stands and starts to back away. Then he drops the phone and runs. My instinct is to run after him, but I’m not leaving Sam here alone. I grab the phone off the ground and find that, yes, he did call 911.
“This is Keegan Ranger. I’m with Sam Sutton and it looks like he’s been attacked. I need EMS here right away, please.” I rattle off the coordinates and hang up. My next call is to Collins. When she hears this on the radio, she’s going to freak out.
“Hey. Your brother has been attacked—” I don’t get anything else out before I hear her radio go off in the ba
ckground, telling her what I just told her.
“What the hell is going on? I’m on my way.” I can hear Wade pick up the radio and respond in the background.
“I don’t know. I finished with a client at one twenty and realized Sam wasn’t back from lunch. I knew something was wrong so I came looking. I’ll explain the rest when you get here. I need to call your dad. He knows Sam didn’t show up from lunch.”
“Okay, I’ll be there in less than five minutes.”
The ambulance arrives as I’m describing to Fred what’s going on. “Meet us at the hospital. I’ll ride over with him. Collins is on her way.”
“Okay, Keegan. Thank you for finding him.” I can hear the relief in his voice.
“No problem,” I reply and hang up. I want Sam to sit up and say, “I’m okay,” but I’m afraid for him to move, in case he has a neck injury.
“Sam? Do you know who I am?” I grab his hand and hold it loosely as the paramedics rush up to us.
“Yeah, The Punisher.”
I breathe a sigh of relief. At least he’s not out of it. “Okay, pal. I’m going to move off to the side so these people can check you out. Collins is on her way here.”
“Okay, Keegan,” he croaks.
As they’re poking and prodding him and asking him questions, I call Grady Malone and explain what happened. “Can you head over to my gym and lock up for me? Tell the guys working out what happened. I’m sure they will understand. My keys are in the top left desk drawer.”
“No problem, I’m headed that way. I’ll bring the keys to you at the hospital.”
“Thanks, man.”
As I’m hanging up, Collins’ squad car pulls up and she throws it in park. Not even a second later, she and Wade jump out and rush over. Her eyes are wild and angry. “Tell me what happened,” she demands.
“When he didn’t show up, I called your dad, who said he left home on time, so I retraced his usual route and found him lying in the grass. There was a teenage boy on the phone nearby. He told me he didn’t do it. Then he tossed the phone on the ground and ran.”
“Did you go after him?” she blurts out impatiently.
“No, I picked up the phone to find that the kid called 911. Then I stayed with your brother until help got here. I wasn’t going to leave him alone.”
She grumbles impatiently and walks toward Sam, whom they are loading up on a stretcher. She must know the paramedic because they pause for the woman to give her the rundown.
“They’re taking him to the hospital to examine him. His shoulder is dislocated and it’s possible he has a concussion,” she explains.
“I’ll ride with him; you and Wade meet me there.” She looks hesitantly between me and Sam as they reach the ambulance, and finally nods and strides toward Wade.
I hold his hand the whole way there and when we reach the hospital, where they want me to separate from him, I tell him, “I’ll be right here waiting for you, pal. As soon as the doctor says it’s okay, I’ll come hang out with you.” He nods slightly and closes his eyes. I make my way out to the waiting room and find a red-faced Collins arguing with the front desk attendant.
“What’s going on here?” I ask. A tear slips down her cheek and I know she’s about to lose it. She’s not a woman who cries, probably ever.
I look to the frustrated woman behind the desk. “Ma’am, the ambulance just brought in Samuel Sutton. Please let us know when one of us can go back. This is his sister and I’m his friend. He’s a special needs patient and we don’t want him alone if it can be avoided.”
She purses her lips and nods at me. I wrap my arm around Collins and lead her away. Fred comes through the door about that time and we explain to him what’s going on. Within a half hour, the whole Malone family shows up, except Dylan, who is in L.A. recording her new album.
Right before Collins has had enough waiting and is about to go back over to blister that receptionist’s hide, her name is called. I approach the desk with her. “Mr. and Officer Sutton can go back and stay with him. The nurse will fill you in.”
I squeeze her hand before she and her dad go through the doors to the back to be with Sam.
I wait for what seems like forever. Grant comes over and sits down next to me as I’m starting the blame game on myself.
“So, tell me what happened again. From the beginning. I’m going to get a jump on this.” I explain everything, from the time he left for lunch until we reached the hospital. “Do you think you could pick the teenager out of a lineup?”
“Yeah, but I honestly don’t think he did it.”
“Probably not, but if we find him, he might be able to identify who did do this. I want you to sit down with a sketch artist as soon as possible. Would you be willing to meet with her here? I’m sure I can borrow a room for privacy.”
“Yeah, I don’t want to leave Collins, in case she needs something, and I want to see Sam again before I go home.”
An hour goes by before I get a chance to sit with the sketch artist, who it turns out is incredibly talented. The only thing we couldn’t get exactly right is the nose. The rest is perfect. By the time I’m done, Fred is coming out to give us all an update.
“He’s going to be okay. A slight concussion, some scrapes, a couple of bruises and a dislocated shoulder.” We all sigh in relief.
“Can I see him?” I ask eagerly.
“Of course, son, follow me.” Before we walk away he addresses their friends, “Thanks for coming, everyone. They’re going to release him shortly and I’m going to take him home. I’ll let him know you guys were all here.”
Chief Malone wraps his arm around his wife’s shoulders. “Let us know if you need anything. Grant is already working on the case. We’ll catch who did this.”
Fred nods, obviously saddened by the events of the day, and we go through the double doors to where Sam is waiting for us.
Fourteen
Collins
I knew it was wrong to let Sam walk all over town alone, but my mom and dad have allowed it to happen for years, so they thought it was safe. Well, no more of that. He doesn’t go anywhere unless one of us drives him. I knew he was vulnerable. My brother is far too trusting and kind, never sensing danger as it approaches.
Keegan, my dad, and I sat with Sam at Dad’s house as he answered Grant’s questions, and the longer I listened, the more my anger grew. I have a very good idea who did this. I need Grant to pull video from the bank parking lot half a block away, but I swear it’s that group of kids Wade and I had words with at the convenience store not too long ago. Little freaking punks.
This whole thing started out with them toying with him. Pushing him a little and calling him names. When one of them grabbed him from behind, he used his self-defense knowledge to get out of it. The only problem is that he’s not fast enough. Two of the guys got ahold of him, one of them jerking his shoulder out of socket and the other throwing him to the ground, where he hit his head. He’s not sure where he got the black eye, but it was definitely from one of the two that actually got physical.
The kid that was with him when Keegan got there didn’t hurt him, but he didn’t help either. Those little bastards picked on someone helpless for no real reason! When I find them, I’m going to destroy them.
“You’re stewing again.” Keegan jolts me out of my pummel-the-teenagers fantasy.
“I can’t help it. I moved back here to help take care of Sam and he was attacked.”
“You can’t watch his every move. Besides, he defended himself. You can’t help what happens when it’s two against one. I’m proud of him for standing up for himself.”
I sit forward on the couch to put some distance between us and glare at him. “What kind of macho, bullshit sentiment is that? He’s got Down’s syndrome. He’ll never be able to take care of himself, much less defend himself, even if it is one-on-one. Someone should be with him at all times.”
“You know your brother likes his independence, so that won’t go over well at all.”
“I don’t give a crap what he likes. It’s obviously not safe for him to walk around alone. He’s not a professional boxer with years of experience beating in the brains of anyone who challenges him. He’s like a little boy, and no amount of kicks to the groin or elbows to the solar plexus is going to change that.” I stand. I’m so pissed that he doesn’t get it. “You know what? I’m heading home. I don’t feel very social tonight.”
“You don’t even want to talk this out? You just want to blow up at me and storm out?” he asks, his expression somewhere between angry and hurt.
“I’m not blowing up or storming out. I’m choosing to leave because I can’t listen to the crap that’s coming out of your mouth. Sam’s my brother and my responsibility; I’ll take care of him however I see fit. I’ve also decided he doesn’t need to work at the gym anymore. That’s where he got the idea to fight back. It doesn’t work for guys like him.” I bend down to put on my sneakers, and glance up at his face, and I am almost winded at the hurt look in his eyes. I can’t cave to that though. I have more important priorities—like my dad and brother—to be worried about, rather than Keegan’s damaged feelings. I slam the door as I leave, feeling marginally better after that outburst, and head home.
The next day, I go to my dad’s first thing in the morning and explain to my dad that Sam will no longer be walking anywhere and he also won’t be working at the gym.
“You don’t get to decide those things, Collins,” my dad reminds me. “Your mother and I agreed a long time ago that we will let him live as normal a life as possible. That’s what he’s done and that makes him happy.”
“Well, that’s not keeping him safe. I think I’m the expert on safety here, don’t you think?”
