Silver Bastard

Then he pulled back.

“Becs, you’re my woman now. That’s the way it is.”

Hmm . . . Suddenly Puck was less sexy.

“Don’t I get a choice?”

“You already made the choice. You let me in here, you took me into your body. We’ve been dancing around it for too long now.”

“Choosing to fuck someone is not the same as agreeing to a relationship with them,” I informed him, my voice tight. “And don’t call me Becs. My name is Becca.”

“Okay, we’ll compromise,” he replied. “We’ll just fuck around for a while, how’s that? Just tell me you won’t screw anyone else along the way and we’ll let things grow naturally.”

I narrowed my eyes.

“I’m not an idiot,” I said. “And I’m not one of these stupid little girls you can manipulate with a smile. I know exactly what it means when a man like you goes to a party or on a run. You’ll fuck anything that moves while I sit at home, waiting.”

Puck gave a laugh.

“You sure like the word ‘fuck’ a lot, don’t you?”

“It’s a good word.”

“Well, let me put it like this.” He said. “I’ve fucked a lot of women—in the end, every pussy is pretty much the same. You’re not the same, though. You’re special and I’m not a kid who can’t go ten minutes without getting my dick wet. I’m ready for more than sex.”

“Since when?”

A strange look came over his face.

“This morning,” he replied. “Couple hours ago.”

“That doesn’t make any sense,” I insisted. Puck laughed again, then flopped on his back, catching me and carrying me with him.

“Life doesn’t make sense, Becs. You just gotta roll with it.”

“I said don’t call me that.”

“I’ll make you a deal. Admit we’re a couple and I’ll start calling you Becca.”

I frowned, trapped.

“That’s what I thought. Becs. Now get your clothes on and let’s make a picnic lunch. I want to take you for a ride.”

PUCK

An hour later, Becca stood at the end of the second highest rock ledge, staring down into the water. I’d taken her up along the north fork of the Coeur d’Alene River, savoring the feel of her arms wrapped tight around my stomach and her boobs pressed into my back the entire time. Now we were at the Big Rock, which was exactly what it sounded like—a giant granite rock formation sticking out and over the water.

“I can’t believe how clear it is,” she said, her voice hardly more than a whisper. I followed her gaze. Below us was a deep, wide pool of utterly clear water. I could see every colored rock littering the bottom. A fish swam by lazily, completely unaware of the danger hovering above.

Still couldn’t believe she was really here, that we’d finally managed to cut through the bullshit and get together. Okay, so she wasn’t totally on board yet, but she would be. She wasn’t the kind of girl to fuck around, despite her history. Maybe because of it.

Christ, just being with her made me feel good.

“Wait until you jump off,” I told her. “It’s cold but it fucking kicks ass, too. Makes your heart pound. Total adrenaline rush. Can’t believe you’ve never been here before.”

Becca looked up at me, delight written all over her face.

“I can’t believe it, either,” she said. “If I find out Danielle kept this from me, I’ll strangle her.”

“She’s got to know about it,” I told her. “Every kid who grows up around here comes and parties at this place. It’s a thing.”

I pointed behind us toward the graffiti covering one of the rocks, declaring that the class of 2002 would rule the world.

Wonder how that worked out for them?

I wouldn’t know—I’d never graduated from high school. Got my GED in juvie, though. So far it hadn’t held me back. Of course, the Bastards tended not to worry too much about diplomas. They were more interested in the fact that I’d turned down three different plea bargains.

“I’m just surprised there aren’t more people here,” I continued. “On a Sunday afternoon this place should be packed.”

“I think you scared them off with your bike,” Becca said, her voice dry. “Or it might have been the way you growled at them.”

I laughed, because she made a good point. There’d been a group of teens here when we first pulled up, but they’d disappeared fast enough when they saw my colors. That worked out well for me, because I’d been dreaming about Becca naked and swimming around in that water for a long time now. Speaking of . . .

“Okay, strip down,” I told her, reaching for my shirt. I had it up and over my head, then I caught her staring at me. Not a “you’re incredibly sexy” stare, but a “what the fuck are you thinking?” stare.

“What?”

“You want to go skinny-dipping?” she asked, her voice a startled squeak.

“Water’s cold, Becca. You jump in wearing your clothes, you’ll freeze your ass off on the ride home. Strip down.”

“What if someone comes?”

I shrugged.

“You’re gorgeous, babe, but you don’t have anything new to this world. You’ve got the same parts as everyone else, so I doubt they’ll be too shocked.”