Damaged and the Dragon (9 page)

Farah looked embarrassed, but I just
grinned. “That’s a nice bump she’s got there.”

“
Asshole,” Cooper said in a
low threatening voice.

I couldn’t help laughing. “Dating your
sister. Not interested in your wife. Are any of these things
sinking in?”

Farah smiled while Cooper didn’t know what
to do with his anger.

“
The baby is kicking,”
Farah said and Cooper’s gaze focused on her bump. “Lily is quite a
badass. Just like her daddy.”

With those few words, Cooper lost his anger
and knelt down to kiss the bump.

“
My girl is going to beat
the shit out of everyone.”

Grinning, Farah rolled her eyes. “I don’t
know about that.”

“
Oh, she’ll be a powerful
chick.”

Watching Cooper talk to his unborn daughter,
I understood the look he wore the night he visited me in the
hospital. Back then, I thought he was afraid I’d press charges.
Fear wasn’t something I thought I’d see on Cooper Johansson. I
never thought I’d hear him apologize either. That night, both
happened.

Now I realized he didn’t fear the law. He
feared losing Farah. The guy might be an asshole, but he really
loved her.

Bailey returned wearing a smile. “I had him
put up the bumpers for us.”

“
Thanks,” I said, leaning
down to kiss her head. “I’m looking forward to watching you
bowl.”

Grabbing my bowling ball, Bailey walked to
the lane then bent over and wiggled her butt. Turning around to
wink at me, she looked genuinely happy to find me smiling. Her
earlier anxiety gone, she rolled a gutter ball saved by the bumper.
Once the ball took out two pins, Bailey jumped up and down. I knew
she was showing off those new tits, but I only saw her smile. It
lit up the whole place.

For the rest of the evening, I ate pizza,
rolled would be gutter balls, laughed at Vaughn’s jokes, and waited
to be alone with Bailey.

My body craved her even before she wrapped
her arms around me as we rode to my place. In the warm evening, our
skin grew damp with sweat. Though I desperately wanted a shower, I
wanted Bailey more.

Riding the elevator to my third floor
apartment, I couldn’t wait any longer. My lips met Bailey’s and she
gasped at the suddenness of our embrace. Hesitating only a moment,
she wrapped her arms around my neck. Her tongue stroked mine and I
imagined our bodies moving together too.

My mind swam with a hunger I’d never known
before. The intoxicating need blinded me to everything else. My
hands reached under Bailey’s ass and I lifted her up against me.
Those new tits of hers pressed against my chest as her arms wrapped
tighter around me. Bailey wanted me despite my crappy past.
Promising myself that she accepted me, I unlocked the door as my
lips remained on hers.

Danny Boy called out to me, ready to share a
rumor about an amazing party. When he saw me with a girl connected
at the waist, he made one of his dumb murmurs and backed off.

Never removing my lips from Bailey’s, I
managed to lock my bedroom door. She moaned into my mouth as I
leaned her back on the bed. Tasting her jaw and throat, I couldn’t
get enough of her warm flesh. Bailey’s hands slide through my
hair.

“
Nick,” she murmured as I
sucked at her throat.

When her hands reached under my shirt, I
felt as if I’d been shocked. I instantly jumped back and away from
her.

“
What’s wrong?” she asked,
flushed and reaching for me.

Backing away from her, I climbed off the
bed. The sight of her so beautiful before me intensified the sense
of filth on my skin. Dragon deserved someone as brilliant as
Bailey, but I wasn’t him. I was Nick from the trailer, locked in
the hot closet while the burns on my back festered.

“
It’s too fast,” I lied. “I
don’t want what we have to be about sex.”

“
It’s not,” she said,
crawling towards me. “I want all of you. It’s never been about sex.
I want you, Nick.”

The next words killed me, but I needed to
shower and remove the filth I felt on my skin. Crazy or not, I felt
dirty and couldn’t touch Bailey. I’d corrupt her, even if only in
my mind.

“
I’ll take you home
now.”

Bailey’s face shifted into an expression I’d
never seen before. Shocked and hurt, she struggled not to cry.

“
It’s not you,” I
whispered.

“
Guys say that sometimes.
They’re usually lying.”

Leaning against the small dresser, I studied
her beautiful face. I wanted to return to the bed and know every
part of her. I hungered to kiss the Tinker Bell tattoo on the small
of her back. Nearly a year ago, I’d seen it when she bent down to
pick up her water bottle. Since then, I’d imagined exploring the
tattoo.

Yet I couldn’t.

“
When I started fighting,”
I said while she struggled against her tears, “sex was so easy to
get. Girls who never noticed me suddenly threw themselves at me.
Fucking was nothing after awhile. You are not nothing. You mean
things to me that I can’t express. I don’t even know how I feel
about you. It’s more than anything I understand. I’m all confused
inside and I need us to go slower. It makes no sense, but it’s what
I need.”

Bailey glanced around then back at me. “I
think I understand.”

Bailey didn’t really understand, yet I was
relieved she was willing to lie. The tears never spilled down her
cheeks and she didn’t try to talk me out of taking her home. After
I kissed her goodnight, she smiled like we’d had a great date.

Despite her reassurances, I knew I needed to
get my issues under control or I’d lose her. This was an easy idea,
but more difficult to achieve. Even after my skin burned from
scrubbing so hard in the shower, I felt dirty. No way could I
imagine corrupting Bailey with my filth.

Waking up the next day on the couch in my
apartment, I felt like shit. I didn’t know if I was sick or simply
depressed. Either way, I dragged my ass into the shower and tried
to wash away the bad feelings.

Unable to find the energy to walk to the
house for my mom’s country breakfast, I ate a sundae flavored Pop
Tart. Dozing on the couch, I wished I had woken up in Nick’s
bed.

Maddy showed up around eleven to drop off
Scarlet and take me dress shopping. She used her mom skills to get
me off the couch.

“
Hey, pumpkin, I’ll get you
a strawberry shake if you get up now,” she whispered, stroking my
head. “You’d like that, wouldn’t you, baby? A big strawberry shake
from Burger King. Does that sound good?”

“
Can I have whipped cream
too?” I asked with my eyes still closed.

“
Sure, sweetie.”

Tempted by a promised reward, I shuffled
after her, more tired than I should be after going to bed so
early.

Raven and Winnie were at David’s Bridal by
the time we arrived. The latter surprised me a little since she
hadn’t been out of the house in days. Of course, Raven had a way of
getting what she wanted. I know Vaughn worried about Winnie. He
even blamed himself for the regression she’d suffered after his old
biker friends grabbed her and Harlow.

Today, Winnie looked relaxed. Her long dark
hair was away from her face and she smiled whenever Raven leaned
over to say something.

“
I’m planning to go redneck
chic with the wedding,” Maddy announced, looking through the racks
of dresses.

“
What the hell is
that?”

“
Redneck chic is a nice way
of saying I have bad taste, but I’m embracing it.”

Sizing up Maddy’s blonde girl next door
beauty, I found her dressed normal. “Bad taste how? Is this about
Tucker because, yeah, I see it?”

Maddy rolled her blue eyes then walked to
the next rack. “Tucker is gorgeous. He’s the classiest part of my
life.”

Nearby, Raven burst into
laughter to the point of nearly pissing herself. I didn’t blame her
since we’d all seen Tucker fall off chairs and struggle with
push/pull doors.
Classy, he was
not.

Maddy ignored us both and focused on Winnie
who wasn’t laughing.

“
What’s your name again?”
Maddy asked.

“
She’s Winona. I call her
Winnie. She’s shy like the fat bear with the honey
addiction.”

“
Winnie the Pooh isn’t
shy,” Raven said, still sitting next to Winnie. “He’s just
dumb.”

“
Whatever,” I grunted. “I
call her Winnie. Suck it.”

Winnie said nothing, just lowered her head
until her hair covered her face. Raven caught on and left her
alone.

“
I have no regrets doing
the justice of the peace thing to make stuff official,” Raven said
about her quickie ceremony to Vaughn weeks earlier. With her
younger sister on bed rest, she refused to have a real wedding
until Lark could be her maid of honor.

“
For the big wedding, I’m
wearing my roller derby outfit and skating down the aisle,” Raven
announced, standing up and wandering around the store. “Oh, and
I’ll wear a veil.”

“
And Vaughn is okay with
that?” I asked.

“
He ain’t the boss of me,”
Raven grumbled before smiling. “The roller derby outfit gets him
hard, so yeah, he’s okay with that.”

Apparently thinking about Vaughn, Raven
strutted around the store, wearing a dumb smile. I wanted to strut
too.

“
Did you guys like Nick?” I
asked, maybe a little too loudly.

“
When you told me months
ago about the bacon guy, I thought you were mental,” Raven said.
“Nick is cool. He can’t bowl for shit though. You might want to
keep that in mind if things get serious.

“
Things are
serious.”

“
You know what’s funny? You
love bacon and Nick stinks of it apparently. I love chocolate and
Vaughn wears that great body spray. Man, he smells
good.”

I flicked Raven’s nose. “You already got
your man. Now shut up and pay attention to me. It’s my turn.”

“
Oh, sorry,” Raven said,
erasing the space between us. She looked deep into my eyes and
caressed my hair. “Share with me all the delicious details about
your bacon smelling stud.”

“
Nick doesn’t stink of
anything. He’s very clean.”

“
Even after you finished
with him? Your sluttiness has been known to mark a man.”

“
I’ve been celibate since
the beginning of summer. My pussy has cobwebs at this
point.”

While the clerk looked horrified at our
conversation, Winnie grinned under her hair. Everyone had an
opinion of my love life apparently.

Raven tugged gently at my hair. “Nick’s a
nice guy. I hope you two make it work.”

“
Are you being
snarky?”

“
No, I mean it. He’s a good
guy. Not impressed with money or easy pussy. A guy like him will
make a good husband. You know, if it ever gets that
far.”

“
I really like him,” I
admitted. “He makes me feel different than other guys.”

“
Why worry
then?”

“
I worry he’ll lose
interest like every other guy. Well, except for Deputy Dickhead who
keeps texting me.”

Raven gave me her irritated big sister look.
“You should tell Kirk about the dipshit and make him go away.”

“
I don’t want to run to Pop
over a guy. I’m trying to get them to respect me in the club.
Needing to be saved from a douche like Ennis makes me look
weak.”

“
I guess, but don’t
underestimate a creepy stalker type. Especially one carrying a
gun.”

I never viewed Ennis Darling as a threat
since most men in Ellsberg knew to behave around me. Those who
didn’t know learned the hard way.

“
Can I talk to you
outside?” I asked and Raven glanced at Maddy.

“
We’ll be back to watch you
try on dresses.”

“
I don’t see any I like.
Not my style.”

“
No redneck chic, huh?”
Raven asked and Maddy flipped her off.

When I instructed Winnie to stay, she
frowned at me since I used my master to dog tone. Giving my
assistant an apologetic smile, I followed Raven outside.

“
What’s up?”

“
It’s about
Nick.”

“
Sex issues?”

“
Kinda,” I said, kicking
the ground.

Raven bumped my hip. “Is he too quick? I’ve
heard nice guys have that problem. I don’t know obviously since I
was only with assholes before Vaughn.”

“
You don’t think Vaughn is
an asshole?” I balked.

“
He’s my
asshole.”

Sighing, I looked at the traffic and
recognized a guy driving by. He was one of the many dickheads who
considered me a bang and hang girl. I didn’t even remember fucking
him, but I did recall him blowing me off.

“
Nick and I haven’t done it
yet,” I whispered. “We got into it hardcore last night and I knew
he was digging it, you know?”

“
Why are you talking in
code?” Raven asked, glancing around. “Who the hell is listening
besides me?”

“
Whatever. I just don’t
know why he stopped. I mean we were getting so hot and heavy. I
know I like him so I wasn’t sending a signal to stop. He just did
though. It’s not normal to get that hot and heavy then
stop.”

Raven wrapped her blonde hair into a
ponytail and held it over her head to allow the wind to cool her
neck.