Craving Hawk

  “Hey,” I called, pressing under her chin with my fingertips so she’d look at me. “My dad’s gonna calm down. I promise.”

  “What are we doing, Tommy?” she whispered. “I bought a wedding dress today. We got our nails done. I got a fucking tiara. What the hell are we doing?”

  “Jitters,” I murmured, pulling her against my chest. “It’s just jitters.”

  “No, its not,” she argued, her voice growing panicked. “We should tell your parents, at least. They should know what’s going on. Even if the police never talk to me, they could still arrest you or something. What the hell would I do? What would I tell your parents? They should know, Tommy. They should—”

  “Stop,” I ordered, cutting into her freak out. “Everything is gonna be fine. I told you I’d take care of it.”

  “We’re getting married tomorrow,” she whispered frantically. “Married.”

  A couple more bikes came rolling down the driveway and I lifted my chin at my brother and Rocky as they rolled to a stop beside us.

  “They kiddin’ us with this shit?” my brother asked as he climbed off his bike. “Where were you?”

  “I had shit to do today,” I answered. “Thought Brenna had her shadow. Didn’t even think to ask.”

  “Nah,” Rocky said, walking toward us. “Kid’s had the shits all day.”

  Just then something loud crashed inside the house.

  “Aw, fuck. Someone’s throwin’ shit,” my brother muttered as he passed us. “Aunt Farrah’s gonna flip.”

  As soon as the two of them had gone inside, I got on my bike and jerked my head at Heather. “Climb on,” I ordered, grabbing my helmet and stuffing it on her head. “We’ll talk when we get home.”

  “I never even said you could move in,” she said in frustration as she threw her leg over the seat. “We didn’t even get that far.”

  “You wanna live in different places?” I asked, scoffing.

  “Yeah, I’m sure that would convince everyone,” she snapped sarcastically. “But we didn’t even talk about it.”

  I shook my head and turned on my bike, drowning out whatever she said after that. I wanted to get the fuck out of there. Just being on my aunt and uncle’s property made me twitchy. I didn’t know how they’d continued living there after the shooting. Four of us had died in their back yard. Our entire world had been torn apart right outside their back door, but they hadn’t moved. When my cousin Lily had been released from the hospital, they’d come right back home. It blew my mind.

  I realized when we were halfway back to the apartment that it was the first time Heather had ever been on the back of my bike, which was kind of nuts. It highlighted the fact I’d known her for years, but I really didn’t know that much about her. I wasn’t sure what her favorite food was or what she was going to college for. I didn’t even know her birthday.

  I turned away from the apartment and felt her pinch my side, but there wasn’t really any way to tell her where we were going until I’d parked in front of my house. I felt her scramble off the bike and looked up at the old beast, taking in the peeling paint and wrecked siding with a grimace. I hadn’t taken anyone to the house except my parents when I’d first bought it, and I was pretty sure it looked worse than it had then.

  “Is this your house?” Heather asked, walking toward the slanting porch.

  “Stop!” I ordered as she got to the base of the stairs. I hurried toward her and put my hand on her hip. “Second step is almost rotted through, fourth one has a nail stickin’ out,” I warned.

  She nodded and stepped gingerly around the spots I’d pointed out before stopping at the front door.

  “Well?” she said, gesturing for me to go first. “Give me the tour.”

  I chuckled and unlocked the front door, pushing in ahead of her. I probably shouldn’t have even bothered with locking up. It didn’t keep anyone out of there if they were trying to get in, but I liked the feeling of unlocking the place. My place.

  “Not much to show,” I said with a grin, glancing around the bottom floor. Most of the walls were gone, and the few left up were half covered in peeling wallpaper.

  “Whoa,” she replied, slowly walking further into the house. “It’s a lot bigger than it looks from the outside.”

  “That’s ’cause all the walls are gone,” I replied dryly, kicking some wood out of the way.

  I grabbed her hand before she could walk into the kitchen and tugged her up the stairs to the second floor. The stairs were one of the first things I’d fixed when I’d gotten the place. I was always working by myself, and I really hadn’t wanted to fall through the fucking stairs and get stuck there.

  “So there were four bedrooms,” I explained when we reached the second floor. “And one bathroom. But I tore out most of the walls—”

  “I see that,” she mumbled, looking around.

  “And I was thinkin’ that I’d make one big master with a connected bathroom, and then I’d frame in the other two bedrooms with a Jack-and-Jill bathroom between ’em.”

  “A Jack-and-Jill bathroom, huh?” she teased, moving across the floor.

  “Just makes sense with the way the house is laid out,” I replied, shrugging.

  “What have you done since you got it?” she asked, looking out one of the few windows still intact.

  “Fixed the stairs and the floor up here,” I answered, stepping up behind her. “And tore down a bunch of shit.”

  “Are you going to sell it when you’re done?” She leaned back against me.

  “Don’t know,” I replied simply. “Figure it’ll depend on where I’m at. If I’ve got a family. This is a pretty solid neighborhood. Big yard and shit.”

  “Well, I like it,” she announced, spinning to face me. “I wanna help.”

  “Oh yeah?”

  “Definitely. I’ll help paint, and put in tile and all that stuff.”

  “So in about two years when I’m almost finished—that’s when you want to help?” I laughed.

  “That sounds about right,” she said, nodding.

  I smiled and kissed her. I couldn’t help it. She was grinning happily, the stress from earlier completely gone, and she was so fucking pretty.

  “Your mom was like a general today,” she said as she pulled away.

  Okay, the stress wasn’t completely gone.

  “She had a list of things for us to do.”

  “Yeah?” I asked, pulling away. “Did you get it all done?”

  “Of course.”

  “You get a dress?”

  “Do you think she would have let me leave if I hadn’t?” she asked in frustration.

  “You’re gettin’ worked up over nothin’,” I told her, gesturing for her to head back downstairs. “We couldn’t just sneak off and get married. You think my dad’s pissed now? That shit woulda sent him over the edge.”

  “Maybe they’re right,” she mumbled, running her hand along the wall to keep herself steady on the stairs. I needed to get a railing in.

  “Heather,” I called as she walked toward the front door. My jaw was tight as she spun to face me, but I kept my voice calm. “You’re either in this or you’re not. I’m not forcin’ ya to do anything. But I’m gettin’ real sick of tryin’ to fuckin’ convince ya. I know you’re savin’ my ass, alright? If you wanna bail, you need to tell me now.”

  I knew I was asking a lot. Fuck, if not for me, she wouldn’t be dealing with any of this bullshit. The police could ask her questions, she could answer them however she wanted, and it would be over for her. It was that simple.

  Heather didn’t owe me a goddamn thing.

  “I’m in,” she said softly, still standing by the front door. “I told you I was, and I am.”

  “I know my parents are makin’ shit hard,” I said, moving toward her. “But I’m a grown ass man. I own a house—a shitty house—but it’s still a house. I work full time. Bought my car and bike myself. I love ’em, but they don’t make decisions for me.”

  “We’
re a team, right?” she asked, tipping her head back as I got close. “Me and you.”

  “Me and you,” I confirmed. “We’re seein’ how it goes just like we’d be doing anyway, considerin’ how shit-hot the sex is.” She giggled and I smiled. “We’ll just have a piece a’paper that says no cops, or Aces for that matter, can come between us.”

  “Okay.” She straightened her shoulders and nodded firmly. “We’re doing this.”

  “I think we’ve got more goin’ for us than most,” I said quietly, reaching out to push her hair away from her face. “We know what this is. We’re not goin’ into it with stars in our eyes, expectin’ everythin’ to be perfect. It’s protection, baby. Plain and simple. And men and women have been marryin’ for that reason for thousands of years.”

  “You’re right,” she said, reaching out to squeeze my waist in a hug. “We know what this is.”

  We stood silent for a few minutes in the doorway of my house. Shit was gonna get complicated. I could feel it in my gut. We might have been getting married the next day, but that sure as fuck wasn’t going to solve any problems.

  The cops could still question Heather, and they would. She just wouldn’t be forced to testify if anything went to court, which would help a hell of a lot. I didn’t know what they had on me, but I was crossing my fingers it wasn’t much. There was no way they’d found Mark Phillips, but I had no idea what they might’ve found in his house.

  And all that shit was the least of my worries, because by the way my dad and Dragon had flipped out about the women that day, something far worse was going down.

  “You ready to head home?” I asked Heather, smoothing my hand down her back until it rested at the top of her ass.

  “Yeah,” she replied. “I need to practice my makeup for tomorrow.”

  I let out a breath of relief and ushered her back to my bike. I was going to deal with one thing at a time. Tomorrow was the wedding. As long as we got through that, I’d deal with the other shit afterward.

  * * *

  “We’re gettin’ married today,” I whispered in Heather’s ear the next morning, sliding my hand up her stomach and wrapping my hand around her tit.

  “But not until later,” she rasped, arching her back and rolling her hips against my cock.

  We were already naked. We hadn’t bothered putting anything on after we’d fooled around the night before, and as I reached down and ran my fingers through the little thatch of hair between her legs I found her already wet.

  “Were you havin’ a good dream?” I teased, kissing the side of her neck as I pushed her top knee forward. I loved waking up with easy access to her.

  Heather usually slept on her side. Sometimes I’d wake up on my back with her pressed against my chest, and other times I’d wake up with her facing away from me and my dick nestled in the crack of her ass. I was pretty sure she slept however she was comfortable and I was the one moving to be closer to her.

  “I was on a deserted island,” she said with a sigh as I rubbed back and forth over her pussy from behind. “And I was rolling around on the sand with… Jason Momoa.”

  I scoffed and slapped gently at her pussy, making her jerk in surprise. “Wrong answer,” I mumbled, making her laugh.

  “I wasn’t even—” her words cut off as I lined up my cock and slid inside her. It was still a tight fit, fantastically tight, but her body had grown used to me and it only took a couple thrusts before I was all the way inside.

  The sex was lazy, all small movements and soft touches, but it was just as good that way as it was when we were rolling around all over the bed. I’d never had that with someone else. Get in, get off, get out had been the status quo since I’d started having sex. I’d never done the slow stuff until Heather. I’d never really wanted to, and I also had only woken up with women a handful of times.

  “You should go,” Heather murmured as I pulled away, making me frown. “We’re not supposed to see each other before the wedding.”

  “I think that ship has sailed,” I replied, grabbing a t-shirt off the floor to clean her up.

  I really needed to stop being inside her without a condom, even if I was pulling out before I came. That worked most of the time, but it sure as hell didn’t work all the time. She was on birth control, but I’d heard people say it sometimes didn’t work for one reason or another, and I wasn’t a fucking doctor so I had no idea what those reasons were.

  “I’m getting ready at Brenna’s,” Heather said, rolling over to face me as I got out of bed. “As soon as I’m showered and stuff I’m going to go over there.”

  “You need me to do anything?” I asked as I walked over and started some coffee.

  “No. Did you get clothes yesterday?” She sat up in bed and leaned back against the headboard, pulling the blankets up to her chest.

  “Yup.”

  “We have to have two people sign as witnesses, I was thinking my sister and your brother?”

  “Fine with me.”

  “I forgot to get you a ring,” she blurted suddenly, her eyes going wide. “Shit.”

  “Wouldn’t wear one anyway.” I shrugged.

  “What? Why?”

  “ ’Cause I’m workin’ on cars all day. Wedding ring gets caught inside an engine with my finger still in it and I’m fucked.”

  “Oh. That makes sense.”

  I poured her a cup of coffee and carried it over, kissing her before I’d let her have it. “It’s gonna be great,” I said, kissing her again. “Stop worryin’.”

  Heather stayed in bed while I hopped in the shower, but she was already getting her stuff together when I came back out of the bathroom. I stopped for a second in the doorway and stared. Her hair was crazy; she had some little indented lines across her hip from where she’d been lying on the sheets, and she was bent over searching for something under the bed with her bare ass in full view.

  “You need some help?” I asked, startling her.

  “Shit,” she muttered, straightening up quickly. “Did you get a good show?”

  “It was pretty nice,” I teased, dodging the balled up sock she threw at me.

  “Do you have more stuff to bring over tonight?” She glanced at my duffle bag. “I was thinking I’d make some space before I left today.”

  “Nah.” I shook my head, moving forward so I could get my hands on some of the naked skin she was flaunting. “That’s pretty much all of it.”

  “You only have one bag full of stuff? Seriously?” she asked, resting her hands against my chest as I pulled her against me.

  “Nova’s stored at my parents. So’s the shit from when I was a kid and all my campin’ stuff. Tools are at the garage.”

  “Well that makes things easy,” she said with a smile. “Now go. I need to get ready.”

  I leaned down and kissed her, sliding my tongue into her mouth as her fingers gripped my t-shirt. I’d just had her and I already wanted her again. It was fucking nuts.

  “Go,” she ordered, pushing me back a step.

  I nodded and let go of her, but I didn’t move as she slid around me and closed herself into the bathroom.

  I was getting married.

  Holy fuck.

  She popped her head back out the door and gave me a small smile. “I’ll see you soon.”

  “Yeah you will.”

  Chapter 11

  Heather

  “Stop moving!” Farrah griped as she tried to get my new diamond stud through my top lip.

  “I’m trying,” I mumbled back.

  “Stop talking! Jesus!”

  “Are you guys almost ready?” my sister asked, walking into Brenna’s kitchen. “You’re going to be late.”

  “We on a timeline?” Farrah asked dryly.

  “Well, everyone is here.”

  I pulled my head away from Farrah as soon as she’d secured the jewelry and looked up at my sister.

  “Whoa, sisterbeast,” she said, smiling wide. “You look beautiful.”

  “Try not to sound so
surprised,” I joked, getting to my feet.

  I’d tried on my dress when we were at Farrah’s the night before, and thankfully it fit me like a glove. I couldn’t wear a bra with it, but I was pretty sure Tommy would dig that, so I didn’t worry about it. Farrah had curled my hair away from my face in soft waves and stuck the headband on so it just peeked out at the top of my head, but I hadn’t let anyone help me with my makeup. I’d done it myself, knowing what worked and what didn’t after my trial and error the night before. My eyes were done in nudes with thick black winged liner and a ton of mascara, and I’d covered my lips in a deep plum color that matched my fingernails. It ended up looking a little retro and a little rocker and completely rad.

  “Who’s here?” I asked Mel, picking up my train so it wouldn’t drag across the floor.

  “Mom and Dad.” She rolled her eyes. “And Aunt Kathy, Uncle Randy and Devin.”

  “What?” I asked, freezing in place.

  “What?” Mel asked in confusion as Farrah stood up from her seat and grabbed my elbow like she thought I was going to fall.

  “Who the fuck invited them?” I asked, pulling away from Farrah so I could hurry to the front door. “We need to get over there right now.”

  Farrah and Mel were the only ones left in the house and I didn’t pause to wait for them as I stormed outside and got in the passenger side of Farrah’s car. The plan had been to walk through the field between the house and the club, but I was suddenly afraid that would take too long.

  Thankfully Farrah must have understood my urgency because she was right behind me and got us over to the clubhouse fast.

  I didn’t bother walking through the building, instead I hurried around the side. I could hear a bunch of voices talking and laughing out back, and I let out a relieved breath as I went around the corner and found everyone calmly standing around. Kids were running around the chairs that had been set up, and there were a group of guys getting beer from a keg set up next to the building. I searched the crowd for Tommy and found him up near the front of the chairs, laughing at something Leo said to him. I grinned and started to take a step backward so no one would see me when Tommy’s smile suddenly dropped off his face.