Cherry Bomb

  The scenery was beautiful and serene, but it was the small, log cabin that threatened to take my breath away. It looked like it came straight out of a fairy tale. There was a huge, stone chimney on top of it and the entire right side was covered in wisteria. The warm, summer breeze brushed through the trees around us. The smell of pine tickled my nose. I could almost taste the freshness of the crisp summer air. Through the large glass windows, I could view the large family room, where a young lady was curled up on the couch, her striking red hair fanned out over a pair of pillows. She appeared to be sleeping.

  “It’s beautiful.”

  “I think so,” he said and smiled. “My dad, brother, and I built it ourselves.”

  He pulled the tips of my hair and laughed.

  “Breathe, babe. You had the nerve to walk into my club with a list of questions, I think you can handle a cookout.”

  Drake got out and came around to my side of the car. He took my hand easily, without even thinking about it.

  We walked around to the back of the house. I knew he could feel my tension, his thumb rubbed soothing circles around the base of my wrist.

  “FYI, the apple didn’t fall far from the tree.”

  What the hell did that mean?

  We stepped through a gate. I could smell the wood burning before I even spotted the large oversized fire pit. Thomas and Jeff were swimming in the in-ground pool. Billy and an older gentleman were sitting on a large metal patio table. The older gentleman stood up, and I felt Drake tensed beside me, but only for a moment. If it wasn’t for the fact my body wasn’t so attuned to his every movement I would have missed it.

  “My dad, Jerry Hart,” Drake said and barely lifted his finger in the man’s direction.

  The man had his head tilted to the side and slightly down. Drake and his dad looked nothing alike. His dad was shorter, leaner, almost a beanpole, with salt and pepper hair I could tell was dark in his younger days from the light smattering of hair around his jawline. But the way he walked and held himself was a mirror image of Drake. Something told me that Drake had study this man until his very essence crept into Drake’s soul.

  “I never thought I would see the day when Drake walked in here with a lady,” his dad said with a smirk, as he walked over to us. “Hello, beautiful. Names Jerry, and I’m thrilled my boy here has got such great taste.” Jerry leaned in to kiss my cheek.

  I glanced up at Drake, who was holding onto my arm and smiling. The thought he wanted me here with his family eased some of the pain I experience the past few days he was away.

  “I told you they will love you,” he whispered in my ear. Jerry laughed, and so did I.

  Jerry slapped Drake on the back, “Come on, son. Take a seat. Grace has wonder when you were getting here.”

  Drake led me over to the table Billy was sitting at. The flutter of nerves suddenly took over. I sat to Drake’s left and felt relieved when he held onto my hand.

  “Claire, my love, bring Drake and me a beer please,” Jerry screamed over his shoulder.

  I barely had time to look up when a medium height lady with light brown hair and brown eyes came out holding a bottle of beer in each hand. She was wearing cutoff shorts and an oversized t-shirt, hiding her body which one could easily tell was spectacular. But that was not what caught my attention the most, she couldn’t be more than thirty. “Drake, when did you get back in town?” she asked, handed Drake a beer then preceded to sit down in Jerry’s lap.

  “Late last night,” Drake answered, tilting the bottle back to take a drink. He rubbed off a drop on his lip then said, “Cherry, my mom, Claire,” he said with a knowing smile.

  Claire held out her hand to shake mine. You were not lying when you said your dad liked them young. Maybe, age didn’t matter in this family.

  “Drakie,” was screamed out from a tiny voice. I flipped my head to see Grace running out the back door in a pink polka-dotted bathing suit and a pair of yellow sunglasses. She was followed closely by a young, fake blonde, showcasing a smoking body in a black bikini, or maybe it was a couple of pieces of yarn. It didn’t cover much. Hell, the top wouldn’t even cover my nipples. I couldn’t help but wondered if it was Katie, Drake’s only sister.

  “Hey, Cherry,” Grace said as she jumped up in Drake’s lap. “I’m not wearing underwear cause I’m going swimming. Plus, they said it was Wednesday and it’s not it’s Saturday. Mommy got the wrong pair.” Then she turned and asked me, “What does your panties say?”

  Mortified much? I held my breath until everyone started laughing and Billy said, “Property of Drake.”

  Then I wanted to crawl under the table and hide.

  “Billy Hart,” the blonde said, slapped Billy on the back of the head, and then held out her hand to shake mine. “Charlotte, this one's wife.” She motioned her head to Billy with a smile.

  I shook her hand with my free hand and squeezed Drake’s with the other one. At that point, I needed reassurances I belonged there, the land of perfect bodies. He squeezed mine back, showing me he wanted me there.

  Drake kissed the top of Grace’s head. “Where’s Mommy at?”

  “Sleeping,” Grace said.

  “She’s been asleep awhile. It’s time for her to get up,” Claire said, helping Grace down and over to the swimming pool. “She’s been missing you.”

  “Come on, baby. Time you met my first love.”

  Drake guided me into the house. We went through the kitchen and into the living room. The woman I saw in the window with the most beautiful mane of red curls was snuggled up on the couch. Drake led me to the coffee table where he sat across from her. He placed his hand on her shoulder and softly shook it. “Soda pop, I have someone that is dying to meet you.”

  I first noticed her small hands and short stumpy fingers before she even turned over and brought into my view her flattened profile, the way her eyes slanted upward on her face, and the most infectious smile I had ever witness. Drake Hart’s baby sister, his first love, Grace’s mom had down syndrome.

  “It’s been nine days. I counted them,” she said, smiling even bigger.

  “I missed you and Grace too.” He pulled me down beside him. “Katie, this is Cherry. The girl I told you I wanted you to meet.”

  Katie bounced up and kissed me on the cheek. “Hey, I like meeting Drake’s friends. Drake never had a girl that was a friend. Will you be my friend too?”

  “I would love to be your friend. I’ve met your daughter. She’s beautiful.”

  “She looks like our Mommy, but she’s nice,” Katie said.

  At her statement, Drake closed his eyes and bared down on my hand, clawing his nails deep into my palm. There was no doubt, he was trying to release some of the pain it caused him.

  I heard him mumble to ten then open his eyes. “Grace is swimming. You know how much she loves when you swim with her.”

  “I’ll go change,” Katie said, kissing Drake on the forehead.

  Drake watched her every step until she was on the landing at the top of the stairs. “Our mom is a piece of shit. But still Katie wants to hold onto what she should be.” Drake shifted his eyes to me. “Guess how old Katie is?”

  I shrugged, not knowing how to answer. “Young.”

  “She’s twenty-one. Grace out there is four. Yeah, do the math. That is thanks to the piece of shit too.”

  Drake Hart

  Of all the crap life had thrown at me, the day Katie told me what she had been through was the worse. But then I felt like hell for thinking that because the outcome was one of my greatest blessings.

  Drake Hart

  Twenty-one-years-old

  Five Years Earlier

  Katie had grown into a breathtaking young lady who was always smiling in spite of the mistreatment our mother still inflicted. The smile had, however, vanished from Katie’s face. She was hurting. The idea made me physically nauseous. I adored her and did everything I could to protect her. I wiped away her tears and kissed her boo-boos. Unfortunately, there were too
many to kiss away.

  “Drake, will you always love me?” Katie asked me one night.

  We were sitting out on the back porch, under the drape of an old, large oak tree. The night sky was littered with a blanket of stars. Katie called the stars God’s diamonds.

  “See that star right there?” I pointed over to the brightest star in the heavens. “As long as that star is shining, I’ll take care of you.”

  “But will you love me?” she asked again.

  “I’ll always love you no matter what.”

  “My stomach hurts,” she whispered.

  “Do you need me to take you to a doctor?” I asked back.

  “No. I know what is wrong with it.”

  “What is it? Are you hungry?”

  “Mommy made me do it.”

  I stiffened, then squeezed my eyes shut, fighting the urge not to strangled the bitch who had given birth to us with my bare hands. “What, Soda pop?”

  “Those men, it hurt so bad, but mom said they would love me like you do if I did it.”

  “Let them what?

  “Make love.” Katie stopped talking and started to cry uncontrollably. She gripped my hand and placed it on her stomach. I felt the hard roundness at once. Sometimes our biggest blessings come from our worst struggles. Grace was one of those blessings.

  Drake Hart

  Cherry laid her head on my shoulder, giving me a moment to regain my composure. I had never allowed anyone outside of my family to meet Katie. She was my guarded secret. I had also never told anyone about the beast who had given birth to us. Cherry made it easy to let her in.

  “I guess I can give that monster credit for one thing, Grace. That little girl has saved me so many times.”

  “I hope she paid for it?” Cherry whispered so lightly I almost missed it.

  “Not enough. It’s impossible for her to ever pay enough. But yes, her and her pimp is serving thirty years in prison.” I leaned my forehead against the top of hers. “Claire is so good to them. My dad couldn’t have picked a better person to take care of all of us.”

  “I’m ready,” Katie yelled as she ran down the stairs with a bounce that was pure joy. “Are you coming to watch me?”

  I raised my head and smiled. “No, not right now. I’m going to show Cherry my old football stuff first.”

  Before Cherry had a chance to question me, I was on my feet and held my hand out for her. She placed her hand in mine and I could sense her trepidation.

  “You’re not swimming too?” she asked.

  “No, I’m not because you don’t swim.” And for once someone comes before Katie.

  Cherry followed me to the staircase, but I stalled at the bottom step. I needed . . . “Fuck it,” I said, before cramming my hands in her hair and covering her lips with mine. I had to taste her, feel her lips run over mine. The instant our lips met, I was overtaken by the familiar high buzzing through my veins. I loved her body, the curves, the swell of those amazing breast. I was in awe of her. I licked at the plumpness of her bottom lip. Damn, I had never seen the appeal in kissing before. The last thing I wanted was some whore’s lips against mine. But I couldn’t get enough of breathing Cherry in.

  I slid my tongue between her lips as she opened for me. Her small hand gripped my upper arms and squeezed. I wanted more. I wanted this. Her tongue moved against mine before she sucked down on my lower lip.

  “You’re so sweet. I need sweet,” I whispered against her mouth.

  Suddenly everything felt too good, right. Her chest heaved against me. Slowly wrapping the bottom of my shirt in her hand, she led me up the stairs. Hell, it was my home and she was topping me again. I slid one hand across her jaw and raked the other one through her hair. Roughly, I tugged the silver clasp holding her hair in place, and felt the softness of her curls as they fell against my hand. Fisting the mass of curls tightly in my fingers, I pulled it tight, giving better access to her long, lean neck, and dragged my teeth down her jawline, conscious of the spark of electricity between us. I spooned her ass in my hands, and with a groan I barred down on the curve of her shoulder, wiggling my teeth deep into her skin, eliciting a sharp yelp from her luscious lips.

  She moaned and that instant, hearing those innocent sounds come from deep within her throat, I didn’t care about anything else; that we were in my family home, my little sister was only a few steps away, or the fact I didn’t feel. These emotions were a foreign concept to me.

  I pushed her back up to the door leading into my old bedroom. It was where I stayed when Katie and Grace needed me. Not once have I ever brought a female up here. But Cherry had always been my exception.

  “Door,” I rumbled into her mouth before crushing our mouths together.

  I wasted no time, turning her against the wall when she opened the bedroom door at my command. My hands traced down her sides and I grasped the hem of her shirt, bringing it up and over her head. Breaking the kiss for only a second, I tossed it to the floor.

  Not to be totally left out, she had my shirt unbuttoned and pushed off my shoulders.

  My fingernails scratched down her bare skin as I made my way to the waist of her pants. Making quick timing, I undid them and had them puddling at her feet. She kicked them and her flip flops free from her body. I caught her earlobe between my teeth and run a hand over her left breast.

  “Fuck, you have gotten under my skin,” I growled.

  Looking across the room I could see the outline of her perfectly formed body in the full-length mirror hanging on the back of the closet door. I had fantasized about her body every night since Billy first placed her file in front of me. But reality was better than any dream. So much better. Fucking perfection in the flesh.

  In my dreams, I had done everything to her body. But at that moment all I wanted was to watch her in that mirror as she made love to me. Shit, love. Where in the hell did that come from? I didn’t make love. I fucked hard.

  She was wearing a pair of pale pink panties that only covered half of her round firm ass, and a matching bra that showcased the hard pink nipples on her breast, her luxurious locks spilling down the length of her back. Her muscles flexed as she pushed up on her toes to kiss me again. The image of her in the mirror and the feel of her lips on my skin made the cock in my already too tight shorts bulge painfully against the zipper.

  She bit down on my earlobe. “I want rough. I want your rough.”

  I slapped my hand across her backside and watched my handprint embed on her skin. “You can’t handle my rough right now.” I undid the button on my shorts, pushing them and my boxers to the floor. "I don’t even think I can right now,” I whispered then pulled her with me to the bed.

  Sitting on the edge of the bed, she straddled my lap, rolling her hips over me with nothing but the thin layer of silk separating us. I buried my face in her overflowing breast and ripped the panties from her body.

  “Hey, those were a good pair.”

  “Babe, if the only thing between me and your pussy is a piece of silk. They won’t stay in good shape long.”

  So many pictures and thoughts ran through my head. The main thought was self-loathing for allowing lust to overtake my common sense. Katie would come looking for me. She didn’t need to see me and any woman like this, and Cherry deserved more than a quick fuck in my childhood bedroom.

  “Please, don’t stop. I don't care if they find us . . .” Cherry murmured into my ear then bit down on it.

  Fuck, my will was gone.

  Grabbing her hips, I lifted her body and held the base of my cock with the other hand before dropping her and letting her slam down on me.

  The sensation was intense. I stilled her hips before I shot my load inside of her.

  Once I felt in control, I slowly started moving. No other woman had ever felt like every curve of her body moved in unison with mine. We were two pieces of a puzzle that perfectly fit together. Sliding my hands down her long, toned legs, I wrapped them around me. The simple change in position had me moving deeper
inside her than I had ever experience before.

  I was aware of the screams coming from outside, the sound of water splashing in the pool. Any minute, Katie could be climbing the stairs. The only thing that mattered was hearing the sounds Cherry was making and hearing her scream out Master.

  She yanked on my hair, pulling my mouth to hers, our tongues moving in rhythm with our hips. I glanced at the mirror and watched the gentle sweep of her body as she moved over me. Damn, she's beautiful.

  “Look behind you. You need to see how good you look.”

  She twisted her head to the side and took in the sight of our bodies moving as one.

  “Drake,” she said and brought her fingers down to her clit. “Oh, God,” she moaned bringing her head down onto my chest.

  Gripping her hair, I yanked her head up. “Look at the mirror. Look at how wonderful we look together. And whenever you doubt that I want this, remember this moment and that image.”

  Her hand worked her clit while I explored every inch of her body my mouth could reach. She never took her eyes off the mirror, and I hoped it was an image she would never forget.

  Our bodies were covered in a thin sheen of sweat. A few drops were even dripping down the side of her face. We were close and as much as I never wanted it to end, our time was slowly evaporating.

  I covered her hand with mine and started circling my thumb over her swollen clitoris.

  “Oh, shit, oh, shit, yes,” she screamed and I pressed my lips to hers stifling the sounds she was making as she came apart around me.

  Pushing in four more times, I exploded my release deep inside of her. Cherry’s body still wrecked with spasms pulsated around me. Each time her body clamped down on my cock, I cried out her name. It was as if I was coming over and over again.

  I didn’t want to pull out just yet. Being inside Cherry was the only time in my life I felt like I belonged. Like I finally found a home.

  Slowly, her body began to relax, releasing me from the warm cocoon of nirvana it had held me in. Her arms moved around my neck as she wrapped her body around mine.