CHAPTER THREE - VANESSA
That old truth was true – nothing ever good came from a phone call in the middle of the night. So when my sleep was shattered by the shrill sound of my cell going off, my heart raced as I reached for it. And when I looked at the display and saw that it was an Unknown Number, I felt a sharper stab of fear that bordered on panic.
“Hello?”
“Hey, Vanessa? It's me,” Carter said. “I need you to bail me out of jail.”
I looked over at the clock, appalled to see that it was after two in the morning.
“What did you do?” I sighed. “This time.”
“I'll explain everything when you get here,” he said. “I just can't be here another minute, Vanessa. Think about what it'll do to your father's campaign.”
“Oh? So now you're worried about my dad's campaign?” I said. “I'm not going to come down there and bail your ass out, Carter.”
Of course, I knew full well that I would go bail his ass out. I slipped out of bed and pulled on a pair of jeans and a shirt. It wasn't the first time I'd had to get up at some ungodly hour to save my stepbrother's ass. And though I hated to admit it, the son of a bitch had a point; him sitting in jail wouldn't be good PR for my dad. Especially not now that the scrutiny was going to be even higher given his Senate run.
Not that Carter actually cared. Him throwing that out there was just a trick to manipulate me into coming down there and bailing him out. But even knowing that, being the good daughter I was, I knew what I had to do. The longer he sat in jail, the more the time the press would twist the story. I could see the headlines now: Congressman Mitch Elliott Promotes Family Values Except When It Comes to Stepson, Who Rots Behind Bars.
“Well, the douchebag deserved it,” Carter said. “He had it coming.”
They always deserved it according to Carter. Rolling my eyes, I didn't bother to ask him who deserved it this time. I'd be seeing him in a few minutes anyway and would get more answers at the jail.
“On my way.”
“Thanks, Vanessa,” he said, his voice soft. It almost sounded like he felt bad. Almost. “Listen, I'm sorry about earlier – ”
I hung up before he could even mention what happened at the press conference. I was so tired of hearing his excuses. Tears burned in my eyes as I grabbed my purse and headed down to my car. Carter wasn't a stupid man, yet he continued to do stupid shit. It was almost like he enjoyed tormenting my father. Or maybe Amy was right, maybe he was doing this to torment me. It almost felt like it sometimes.
And hell, maybe I deserved some of it for everything that had happened between us. But that was a logn time ago and this bullshit had gone on for far too long.
ooo000ooo
“You hit a member of the press with a beer bottle?” I asked. “Are you fucking kidding me, Carter?”
If I wasn't mad before, this pushed me straight over the edge. Any crime would come back to bite us in the ass, but the fact that this was caught on film just made thing worse. This was going to be a PR nightmare for my father and a goddamn headache that was going to plague him for his entire campaign.
“Calling that asshole a member of the press is way being too generous,” Carter said as he climbed into my car. “Max Sheppard is a parasite. Scum of the earth. You know how these fucking paparazzi are, Vanessa. They delight in catching us at our worst. In fact, their paycheck depends on it.”
“And looks like you gave him one hell of a story,” I said, sitting down in the driver's side seat. “This couldn't possibly get any worse, Carter. You've really screwed up this time. And I don't know how I'm going to fix this.”
“Yeah, I know,” he said. “But he was on me. And he just kept picking and picking and picking. I just couldn't take it anymore.”
“Because it's always about you, isn't it? You never stop to think how your actions might affect others around you,” I said.
“Now you're sounding like your father,” he snapped.
He should be grateful I was driving, otherwise I would have smacked him upside the face for being such an ungrateful little jerk. I didn't even get a thank you for bailing him out – again. Not that I should have been surprised, but there was absolutely no appreciation for the fact that I'd gotten up in the middle of the night to save his ass one more time.
I let out an exasperated laugh, one of pure frustration and disbelief. “I can't believe you, Carter. You just keep pushing people away. First my dad, then your mom, and now me. Is that what you want? To be completely alone?”
He didn't answer me. Instead, he just continued staring at the road ahead of us as if he hadn't heard me. In the dim lights from the street, he looked so tired. His eyes were heavy, his hair was tousled , and he looked more bedraggled than usual. He didn't look anything like the Carter I knew and cared about so much once upon a time. He was headed down a dark, dangerous path and it killed me to see him like that. I so badly wanted to help him, but he just kept pushing me further and further away.
“Answer me,” I said through clenched teeth. “Is that what you want? Do you want to be alone in this world?”
“No, of course not,” he said, shifting in his seat. “You know that's the last thing I want. I only stay away because that's what you want – isn't it?”
A knot formed in my throat and I had to swallow hard to get it down. When our parents announced that they were getting married, I told Carter that we had to end our relationship. No more spending countless hours enjoying one another’s bodies, no more late-night talks. No more anything that could be deemed remotely inappropriate. At the time, ending it with Carter seemed like the best thing to do in our situation. Especially considering the fact that we were becoming family. Not to mention the fact that my dad was running for a Congressional seat and was putting pressure on me to stay out of trouble and keep my nose clean. He was so focused on his image and I had to do everything in my power to make sure mine remained squeaky clean.
We pulled up to Carter's condo and I was preparing to let him out when he surprised me by scooting closer to me; close enough I smelled the alcohol still heavy on his breath. He kissed my neck as his hand moved between my legs. I felt his fingers pressing against me and I didn't push him away – not at first. Not until he turned my head and kissed me on the lips, holding my face in his hands.
Finally, I pulled away and shouted at him. “What in the hell do you think you're doing?”
I couldn't deny that having his hands and lips on me again had felt good. But I couldn't let him know that. I couldn't encourage such behavior.
“What? You used to love when I kissed your neck,” he said, leaning in for another kiss. “And if I remember correctly, you loved it even more when I fingered you.”
“Stop,” I said, grabbing his hand and pulling it away from my crotch. “We can't do this, Carter. I'm not doing this with you.”
“Why not? Because you're a prissy little good girl now?” he seethed. “It doesn't change the past, Vanessa. I know how dirty you are.”
I slapped him before he could continue reminding me of the past. He stared at me, a mixture of hurt and rage in his eyes. For a brief moment, I feared him. I feared what he'd become. I no longer knew this Carter. For all I knew, he could hit me back. Or worse. Instead, he just glared at me with that look of hurt and anger, and it broke my heart.
But worrying about my heart was a luxury I couldn't afford at the moment. Not with the bombshell that was about to be dropped on my father's campaign. I needed to get home and start figuring out how to navigate the waters ahead. It wasn't my fault, but I knew my father was going to be pissed – and somehow, some way, it would turn into my fault somewhere along the line.
“Get out of my car, now,” I said. “Before I call the cops and have them haul your ass back to jail.”
Carter opened the car door, got out and slammed it shut. I watched as he walked inside, tears stinging my eyes as I rubbed my hand where I'd slapped him. I couldn't believe I'd done that..
Damn you, Carter. Why do you make me feel this way?
His touch, his kiss – even as brief as it had been – made me a horny mess. I wanted him, I couldn't deny that to myself. But there was no way I could ever admit that to him. Dammit, how dare he continue to taunt me like that? How dare he make me feel the way I did?
I drove home, and only when I was comfortably in my bed did I let my mind wander. I thought about what would have happened if I hadn't stopped him. I wondered what would have happened if I'd let him kiss me, to press her fingers into me.
The fires burning hot and bright between my thighs, I ran my hand down my body and touched myself as I fantasized about letting Carter take me in the car, right there in the parking lot of his building. It would have been just like old times when we used sneak out and have sex in his car.
Back then, I'd straddled him in the front seat so I could look into his eyes as I rode him. I remember having his cock filling me up and satisfying me in ways my own hand never could. He knew where to kiss me to drive me utterly insane, and he could make me climax within minutes. I thought back, remembering the way that he'd sucked on my nipples while I bounced on his cock. God, what I wouldn't have given to experience that again.
Closing my eyes, I shoved my fingers inside of me, pretending it was my stepbrother's cock, driving them in and out hard and fast. I summoned memories of the times we'd fucked, the hot nights we'd spent together, banging everywhere we could. The pictures in my mind made me hot and wet, the fire between my thighs growing into an inferno.
And while it took me a while, I finally managed to bring myself to orgasm, crying out “Carter... yes, Carter...” as I finally brought some relief to my body.
I fell asleep, crying and wishing I could go back in time. Things had been so much simpler back then. Back when we were young and dumb and the most we had to worry about was whether or not we'd get caught fucking in the pool house.