Chapter Fifteen
Evie
“Shit,” I muttered as I turned the mower off and collapsed onto the newly mowed grass. I ran my forearm across my sweaty forehead, trying to stop the drops of sweat falling into my eyes.
Why did I have the bright idea to mow this afternoon?
On one of the hottest days of the year so far.
At least it had taken my mind off the huge blow-up between Kick and his mother a couple of days ago. I’d never seen him lose it like that at his family before, but he’d definitely needed to get it out because I’d noticed a change in him since. He didn’t seem as angry or hard as he had been for years.
I couldn’t deny I’d loved how he defended me, too. Veronica had been awful to me after my mother slept with her husband, and a lot of my problems in my last two years of school had been as a direct result of her vindictiveness. Kick had clearly recognised that and held onto his anger over it for all these years.
I sighed and lay back on the grass. Closing my eyes, I thought about where he and I were at now. We were together in a way we’d never been together. He’d opened himself up to me completely, and I felt safe in the haven our relationship had become.
A low whistle sounded from behind me, and I opened my eyes and sat up to find Kick walking towards me with a grin on his face. My body thrummed with desire. This man just had to catch my attention and I was gone. When he stepped into my view looking the way he did this afternoon, I knew it would be hard not to jump him and demand sex. Between the muscles his jeans and white t-shirt barely contained, his confident swagger, and the ruggedly handsome face I’d memorised deep in my heart, I didn’t have a hope in hell of not throwing myself at him. Oh, and add to all of that the beard he’d grown, and I was going down.
Happily.
“Why are you mowing?” he asked as he sat next to me, stretching his legs out in front of him and his arms out behind him, leaning back on his hands.
“Because, funnily enough, the grass grew,” I answered him with the smart mouth I knew he loved.
“Smartass,” he muttered, the grin not leaving his face. “Leave it for me in the future, okay?”
I raised my brows. “Is that an ‘okay’ type statement or a ‘we clear’ type statement?” I couldn’t resist, and waited to see what he’d do next. My body kinda hoped he’d attack it.
He didn’t disappoint, and a moment later, I was lying back on the grass with Kick on top of me. Bending his face close to mine, he growled, “It’s a ‘we clear’ statement, baby, but perhaps you need to be reminded who wears the pants in this relationship.”
Oh god, yes, I do.
I bit my lip and stared at him, willing him to keep going.
To show me who wore the pants.
His eyes searched mine, questioning. “Yeah?” he asked.
I decided to push him, just to make sure he pursued this. “I think we know who wears the pants when all is said and done,” I said in my sweetest voice. “You might think it’s you, but it’s not.”
Heat flashed in those beautiful green eyes of his and he reared up, ripping his shirt off. Next his hands went to my shorts, which he stripped off, along with my panties. He bent his face back to mine and claimed my lips in a rough kiss before saying, “I’m not seeing any pants on you, baby.”
Sitting back up to straddle me, he undid his jeans and pulled his cock out. He wrapped his hand around it and stroked it a couple of times, his gaze never leaving mine, except to take in my tongue licking my lips.
The fact we were in my backyard turned me on so damn much. And I knew it would be turning Kick on, too. He liked to fuck out in the open, and we’d had sex in a lot of strange places over the years.
“Babe, you with me?” he asked, snapping my attention back to what he was doing.
“Yeah, I’m waiting patiently for you to show me who the man is,” I said, goading him.
“Darlin’, this is about so much more than showing you who the man is, ’cause I think we can both agree who the fuckin’ man is here.” His lips brushed over mine again, his teeth lightly biting them. With his gaze firmly fixed to mine, he reached a hand down to my pussy and pushed two fingers in. Rough and hard, causing my body to slide a little. “No, this is about showing you who owns your body.” He slid his fingers out and then pushed them both back in, hard again, and I moaned at the pleasure he caused.
He kept this up, working me towards heaven.
Working me towards admitting to him who owned my body. Although, it wasn’t really a secret.
He’d almost brought me to orgasm when he pulled his fingers out and moved his hands to my t-shirt. Pushing it up to expose my breasts, he then pulled my bra cups down to let my breasts fall out and into his mouth.
My pussy cried out her need, and I begged, “Kick, what the fuck?”
He had a handful and mouthful of boob and wasn’t letting go, but his eyes looked up at mine in a ‘what?’ glance.
“You had me so close, baby,’ I complained.
He let my boob fall out of his mouth. “Really?” he asked with a smug look on his face.
Fine. If that was how he wanted to play this, two could play at that game. “It’s all good, I can take care of this,” I said as I reached down to bring myself to orgasm.
He sat back and watched as I pushed my fingers inside and did what I really wanted him to do. I thought for sure he would take over, but he didn’t. Instead, he took hold of his dick and began pumping it while keeping his eyes trained on my pussy.
Fuck.
My plan had backfired, but I had another one up my sleeve.
I quickly sat up and moved so I could push him onto his back and straddle him. Positioning myself over his cock, I pushed down to take him inside.
“Fuck!” he roared as his face clearly showed the pleasure I was giving him.
His hands came to my hips and held me tight as I fucked him.
He’d already worked me up with his fingers so I wasn’t far off, and the angle I was fucking him at now always got me there faster. As I felt my orgasm about to explode around me, I fucked him harder and faster, desperate for it.
We came together and both cried out our pleasure. I pressed my hands against his chest as I took every last drop of heaven I could find. When I finally opened my eyes, I found him watching me with lust-filled eyes.
I moved off him so I could lay on the grass next to him, curled into his side, head on his arm that had come around my shoulders. “I guess I wear the pants in this relationship,” I murmured against his chest.
His body gently shook as he chuckled. “Was there any fuckin’ doubt, sweetheart?”
I smiled and closed my eyes.
I loved my man, but I really loved how he let me think I had some control when we both knew neither of us had any control.
Our hearts ruled us.
And we each ruled each other.
* * *
The next morning, Kick made me run late for a dentist appointment after fucking me in bed and then again in the shower. I was running around my house like a mad woman trying to get everything together when the dentist’s receptionist called to move my appointment to a later time slot. I rescheduled with her and then dropped my phone into my bag, relieved I now had a chance to calm down and get ready without the panic.
Kick grinned and came towards me, his hands reaching for the button on my jeans. I slapped his hand away. “No,” I said firmly, giving him the evil eye. “You’ve had your fill this morning and I’m all out of orgasms.”
He smirked. “Baby, you are never out of orgasms.”
I raised my brows, trying to look stern. “I am today.”
Crossing his arms over his chest, he said, “So you’ve got a dentist appointment and then what?”
“Then I’ve got work. Why?”
“I’m just trying to figure out how long until I can get my dick out again.” When I smirked, he added, “You don’t seem to realise just what you do to me, Evie.”
I put my hand on my hip, settling in to hear this. “Tell me, Kick, what do I do to you?”
He uncrossed his arms and took the few strides separating us. “You cause an insatiable fuckin’ need in me that I’ve never experienced before. Even if I fucked you all day long, I’d still never get enough.”
Oh god.
My core clenched.
Maybe I did have more orgasms in me today.
He traced my lips and then cupped my cheek before kissing me. “I’m taking you to your appointment and then to work, and then I’m picking you up from work and taking you back to my house. Today we play my way. With my toys,” he growled, and I felt his growl all the way through my body.
Hell yes.
He slapped my ass and said, “Hurry up and finish getting ready. We need to make a quick detour past my place on the way.”
I did as I was told, and fifteen minutes later he had me on the back of his bike and we were on our way to his house. As I hugged him, I couldn’t stop thinking about how good it was to have him back in my life. Thank goodness for second chances, and even third chances. I knew some people hated the idea of love the second time around because they felt it meant so much wasted time, and while I agreed, I truly believed that sometimes you just weren’t ready for each other the first time. Or in mine and Kick’s case, the second time.
We dropped by Kick’s place and he picked something up before we headed to my dentist. I was surprised when he made another detour on the way. We pulled up outside a rundown house and I wondered who lived here. I hopped off his bike and removed my helmet, waiting for him to tell me what we were doing here. However, he simply took his helmet off, dumped it on his bike, grabbed my hand and led me towards the front door.
After he knocked, I asked, “What are we doing here, Kick?”
He seemed so serious. “You’ll see.”
A guy dressed in what looked to be thrift shop clothing opened the door and ushered us in. He also seemed very serious, and I felt a little anxious, but at the same time, I knew Kick wouldn’t put me in harm’s way so this must be a safe place.
“Thanks for coming, man. She wasn’t supposed to be here until tomorrow, but her old man beat her up bad enough last night for her to leave earlier, and I just want to get her out of town as soon as possible,” the guy said to Kick.
“No worries, Brian, I’m just fuckin’ glad she’s finally decided enough’s enough. And King will be, too.”
Brian eyed me over his shoulder and then looked at Kick. “This your woman?”
“Yeah, eyes off,” Kick replied firmly, his message loud and clear.
Brian held his hands up. “Hey, no problem, I’ve got enough to worry about with my old lady. I got no clue how men handle more than one woman at a time.”
Kick chuckled, but all traces of humour were gone when we made it into a bedroom at the back of the house. Sitting on a bed was a woman who looked to be just under thirty. I sucked in a breath at the sight of her face. Her old man had done some serious damage; she could hardly see out of one eye and the rest of her face was heavily bruised, as was her neck and upper chest area. I shuddered to think what her clothes hid.
Kick knelt in front of her, his face a mask of anger. “Fuck, Jen . . .” His voice trailed off as he took in her bruises.
She winced as she tried to speak. “I’m here now, yeah?”
He nodded and swore under his breath again. “We’re getting you out of Sydney today, and I don’t want to ever see you back here again.”
She agreed, and Kick stood. He walked out of the room, and after Brian spoke to the woman for a couple of minutes, he followed Kick out.
“You’ve told King she’s here?” Kick asked as he pulled an envelope out of his jacket pocket and handed it to Brian.
“Yeah, he’s going to swing by a little later today to see her before she leaves,” Brian answered, opening the envelope and flicking through the wads of cash inside.
I was stunned. There had to be thousands in that envelope.
Kick frowned. “It’s all there, as promised,” he muttered.
Brian shoved the envelope in his pocket. “Thanks, I appreciate it.”
“I’ll let you know when I have more,” Kick promised, and then grabbed my hand and led me out of the house.
I was glad to walk outside. Not only was that house rundown, it felt depressing inside, with old furniture and little decoration. Kick seemed on a mission to get back to his bike, but I tugged on his hand to slow him down. When he looked back at me with a questioning glance, I asked, “What was that about?”
He stopped walking and turned to face me. Jerking his chin towards the house, he said, “That’s a safe house for battered women, and we help them escape their motherfucker husbands and boyfriends and get them out of Sydney.”
“Who’s ‘we’?”
“King, Brian and me.”
“And where did you get all that money from?” I asked the question I figured he might not answer, but there was no harm in trying.
He sucked in a breath and avoided my eyes for a moment, but he surprised me when he looked back at me and said, “I got it off a druggie scum-of-the-earth asshole, and trust me babe, you don’t want to know what happened to him, but let’s just say the earth breathed a little easier that day.” He finished talking and then waited for my reply, his eyes wary. He had no need to worry, though, because I had no problems with the earth breathing a little easier.
I gave him a smile that I hoped told him how I felt. “So you were just redistributing the wealth, so to speak?”
He stared at me for just a moment longer with that serious gaze, and then broke out in a smile. I watched as his shoulders loosened and his breathing evened out. “Yeah, you could say that. King leaves me in charge of financing the operation so whenever we come across extra cash, I put it aside.” He paused for a moment before giving me a regretful look. “I wish I could have given you that money to bail your Dad out, but it was already promised to Brian by then.”
“You don’t have to explain yourself, Kick. And besides, you found another way to help.”
He nodded, but didn’t say anything.
“Who was that woman?” I asked quietly. I had the sense she was more than just a stranger who needed help.
“Jen is an ex of King’s. They dated a long time ago, and she left him for the asshole who nearly ended up killing her.”
I had never met King before, but he sounded like a good guy if he still looked out for an ex, as well as all these other women who needed help. “I’d like to meet King one day,” I said softly.
He smiled again. “I can organise that, baby,” he said, giving me something I had wanted for a very long time.
He’d given me a piece of himself he’d kept hidden for so long by promising to introduce me to his friend.
“Thank you,” I whispered, feeling like we’d just taken another huge step towards our future.
* * *
“What are you doing home alone? I thought you and Kick couldn’t get enough of each other these days,” Maree said into the phone.
I tucked the phone between my ear and my shoulder to free my hands. “We were going to spend the afternoon playing with his toys but he had to do some club work,” I said as I grabbed the ice cream out of the fridge.
“Fuck, you’re a lucky woman. What kind of toys are we talking here? And shit, it’s nine pm babe, why isn’t he back yet?”
I laughed, scooping ice cream into my mouth. “I think he meant his remote control car, shit like that,” I joked with her.
I could picture her poking her tongue at me. “Very funny, Evie.”
“Well, seriously, what kind of toys do you think he meant? Mind you, I think Kick could even make playing with a remote control car sexy.”
She sighed. “I think you’re probably right.”
“We’ll have to play another day, though. He rang about half an hour ago and said he’d be busy for a while so he’d see me tomorrow.”
“Bugger. You’ll have to play with BOB instead.”
She spoke the truth. I’d been horny all day imagining amazing sex with Kick, so I’d have to take care of that myself now. “I should video it and send it to him.”
She started coughing and spluttering. “God, you just made me almost choke on my drink. I think that’d be an awesome idea. Serves him right for cancelling on you.”
I put the lid back on the ice cream and placed the tub back in the freezer. Taking hold of my phone again, I began walking to my bedroom. “I was kidding, Maree. Whatever he’s doing obviously needs his attention and if I sent him that, he’d be so distracted.”
“I guess,” she mused, not sounding convinced, “but I’d still send it.”
“That’s cause you’re a bitch and like your men to pay when they don’t make good on promises.”
Laughing, she agreed, “Yeah, I do.”
A noise outside distracted me and caused my heart rate to spike.
Shit, was that someone out there?
“Maree, I think there’s someone outside my house. Can you stay on the phone while I go and check?”
“Fuck . . . yeah, go,” she said, her voice tinged with concern.
“Thanks,” I said as I switched the outside lights on and slid the back door open. I took a tentative step, not seeing or hearing anyone, but that noise had pretty much convinced me someone had been out here.
My back door opened up onto a cemented outside entertainment area that then led to a brick path that took me down the side of my house to the front. I found one of my pot plants had been knocked over, the dirt spilling onto the cement.
Shit.
My breathing picked up and my heart thumped in my chest.
“Can you see anyone?” Maree whispered into the phone.
“No, but someone’s been here because the pot plant is knocked over,” I whispered back, not really sure why the fuck I was whispering when this was my house.
And then I heard my side gate latch, and my heart fell into my stomach.
I wasn’t sure whether to move towards the sound or away from it, but my instincts took over and my legs began walking towards the gate. I switched my phone’s flashlight on and shone it down the side of the house, expecting to come face to face with the intruder any second.
I saw nothing. The gate was shut and the path was clear. I hurried through the gate to the front yard, just in time to hear a squeal of tires and a car speeding off down the street. The car was so far away I couldn’t even work out the make or model.
I switched off the flashlight and put the phone back to my ear to hear Maree screeching at me.
“Shhh,” I said, “he’s gone, and I’m okay.”
“Oh my god, don’t ever do that to me again, Evie! I was asking you if you were okay and you weren’t answering me! Do you have any idea how many grey hairs you just gave me?”
“Sorry, but I needed the flashlight to see.”
“Fuck, so there was someone there?”
I tried to calm down from the fright and get my breathing under control. “Yes, there was definitely someone here.” I’d made it back inside and locked the door behind me, but I was leaving the outside lights on tonight. It probably wouldn’t stop someone intent on getting in, but I felt better having them on.
“Christ, you need to call Kick and get him over to stay with you tonight.”
“No, I don’t want to bug him. And besides, there have been a few break-ins around here lately so it was probably someone trying to get in, and now I’ve scared him off. I doubt he’ll be back. I’ll call the police in the morning,” I said, feeling too exhausted to wait for them to come out tonight. And besides, what could they do anyway? It wasn’t like the cops had the resources to position someone on our street just waiting for a burglar to come by.
“Do you want me to come and stay?” she asked, being the wonderful friend she was.
“No, I’m okay,” I said, “but thanks, babe.”
“Mmmm . . . I’m not convinced I shouldn’t come over.”
“Maree, I have security on the house. I’m locked up tight and no fucker is getting in tonight. I promise, I’m all good.”
She was silent for a few moments and then conceded. “Okay, but you call me the minute you are worried. And I’ll be calling you in the morning to check on you.”
We ended the call, and I crawled into bed.
It was probably a good thing Kick wasn’t here. He’d go all crazy protective, and while I loved his bossy way in the bedroom, I didn’t need him trying to control my every movement.