The Lawson Boys: Marty (23 page)

This produced
good-natured ribbing between her parents.

Belle couldn’t
help but notice that Marty kept his arm on the back of her chair,
his big body angled towards her, his masculine scent invading her
senses and scrambling her brains.

The only way to
escape his lethal zone was to stand up and start gathering the
empty plates.

Immediately
Holly followed. “You stay there, Mrs B. I’ll help Belle clear
away.”

“Thank you,
sweetie.”

Bending forward
to pick up Marty’s plate and cutlery, Belle froze when she felt a
hand brush across the side of her ample bottom. How dare he take
liberties? He would dare, though, because he was doing it while her
parents were focussed on each other as they discussed their plans
for the rest of the day. She gave him a glare before straightening
and stepping back out of reach of those wandering hands.

He gave her an
innocent look in return.

Safely behind
the counter, she filled the sink with hot, soapy water and wondered
how the hell she was going to get through the remainder of the
weekend in his company.

“We have to go,
Pumpkin.” Her father stacked the empty containers in the bin. “Your
Mum wants to go shopping. Again.”

“If you didn’t
eat everything in the house, sweetie, I wouldn’t have to shop for
food so often.” Mrs Broune patted Belle’s cheek. “Have a great
weekend, Belle.”

Going by the
gleam in her mother’s eyes, it was clear what she was hoping.

Mentally
rolling her eyes - she was doing a lot of that today and if she
weren’t careful, they’d roll clear out of her head - Belle started
to put the sponge down. “I’ll see you out.”

“No need.”
Marty got up. “I’ll see you out, Mr and Mrs Broune. Least I can do
for allowing me to share food with you all.”

“Such a
gentleman,” Mrs Broune cooed.

Belle narrowed
her eyes at Marty behind her parent’s backs and he winked in return
as he followed them from the kitchen.

Picking up the
tea towel, Holly whispered, “Good grief, the man is sex on two
legs!”

“Huh.”

“Did you see
the size of his muscles? Oh my God, I think he has a piercing in
his nipple. Oh, Belle, you lucky girl. He’s a bad boy!”

Belle stared
hard at her. “Finished?”

“Bad boys are
so hot.”

Belle
sighed.

“I bet the sex
was hard.”

“Holly!” she
hissed.

“Bad boys
always know how to do hard sex. Make the tongue fall out of a
girl’s mouth.”

“Geez.”

“Speaking of
mouths, did he-”

“No!” Her blood
went all hot and thick at just the thought.

“Never mind,
I’m sure he soon will.” Holly leered. “Tonight?”

“Shut up.”

“Maybe I should
give you some lessons on oral sex.”

There was no
way her mouth just watered. Grappling to subdue the picture that
rose in her mind of doing
it
to Marty, she snapped, “Oh
for-”

“No doubt he
knows what to do, but you? Sweet cheeks, you haven’t sucked on
a-”

“I’m not
talking to you anymore. Dry the bloody dishes and go home.”

“Was his - you
know…” Winking, Holly held out one arm and bent it at the elbow,
easing her forearm up and down suggestively. “Big?”

Rolling her
eyes, Belle grabbed the sponge. His shaft had felt huge, but she
wasn’t about to tell Holly that.

“I bet it is.
If he stood up, we’d probably see the outline of his co-”

“
Holly
.”

“Outline of my
what?” The cheerful, deep voice came from directly behind her and
she dropped the sponge in the sink.

Oh yeah, that
muscled chest was pressed against her back now, one big arm coming
over her shoulder to pick up the sponge and hold it out to her. She
snatched it from him and with relief felt him shift back. Her
nerves were rioting at just his nearness. Good grief, she had to
get a grip!

“Muscles,”
Holly replied, unfazed. “I couldn’t help but notice how ripped you
are. Into weight lifting, obviously?”

“Yep.”

“Any particular
reason?” Belle asked sardonically, now that her parents had left
and not worried what her friend thought. “Or do you find it
attracts the sheilas?”

There was
silence for several seconds and she could swear she felt his eyes
burning two holes in the back of her head, but his voice was it’s
usual cheerful tone when he replied, “Actually, I was a scrawny kid
who was shamed into it by a girl I was sweet on.”

“What a bitch,”
Holly stated.

“I’d say she
made me what I am today, but that wouldn’t take into account my
other experiences.”

“I bet.” Belle
placed a freshly washed plate in the drainer.

Picking up the
plate, Holly leaned back against the sink. “And the nipple
piercing?”

“Another legacy
of a misspent youth.”

Marty sounded
nearer and she could swear his lethal zone was again crowding her
aura. A glance behind her showed him leaning back against the
counter within an easy arms-reach of her. She returned her gaze to
the sink.

“I was trying
to impress a Goth chick,” Marty continued. “Luckily I only got the
nipple pierced.”

Holly
smirked.

“Hey, don’t
laugh. It bloody hurt.”

“But you kept
it,” she pointed out.

“It grew on me.
Plus it gave my mother a cow when she saw it. That was amusing on
its own.” Marty laughed.

Why was it no
surprise to Belle that Marty had been a handful when he was
younger? Now she could remember her mother reading bits out of Mrs
Lawson’s letters years ago. Oh yeah, she could understand fully
now.

“No hankering
to take it out now that you’re a big boy?” Holly queried.

“Not at all. I
like it.”

Placing the
last dish in the drainer, Belle started on the cutlery. Yeah, she
rather liked the piercing too, if she was honest. It added a rough,
tough air to him, clasped securely in that brown nipple that topped
off that heavy swell of pectoral muscle.
Oh God, yes…

Blowing a stray
curl back from her eyes, she plunked the cutlery in the drainer and
pulled the plug.

Marty was still
talking to Holly about misspent youths and the stories they swapped
of mischievous deeds would normally have made Belle laugh, but she
was more intent on shifting from Marty’s lethal zone. It was
wrapping its perverted tendrils around her, trying to draw her
in.

Or maybe it was
her over-heated imagination.

Marty snagged
her around the waist as she made to move past him, easily yanking
her into his side, tucking her in securely as he looked down at
her, his blue eyes twinkling devilishly. “And what about Belle,
Holly? Was she a bad girl, too?”

Not in the
least surprised by Marty’s move, but not particularly wanting to
put on a display in front of her friend who was watching with
interest, Belle glared up at him. “No.” God, did his body have to
feel so warm and strong and protective? Yummy? Now she was directly
in his lethal zone. Uh-oh.

“It’s true.”
Holly dried the cutlery as she spoke, dropping them into the
appropriate slots in the cutlery drawer. “Belle was always the good
girl, always neat and clean, tidy, sweet, helping everyone.”

“I can see
that.” His gaze turned thoughtful, drifting across her face. “Did
you not once do something bad?”

Holly grinned
when Belle shook her head. “Liar.” When Marty raised his brows at
her, Holly continued, “I was being teased the first day we met and
she tripped up the boy who pulled my hair. We both ended up in the
principal’s office.”

“Bad girl after
all.” His eyes twinkled.

“Belle always
stood up for me,” Holly said staunchly.

“You did the
same,” Belle reminded her.

“Been best
mates since we were kids.”

“The best
kind.” Marty gave Belle’s waist a little squeeze.

That made all
sorts of hot zings go through her veins to her loins. After all,
the last time he had a grip on her, she’d been bent over the
counter with him behind her. That didn’t do her determination to
remain calm any good. She had to get away from him before her knees
started sagging.

She was saved
from shoving away by Cleo, who came around the corner of the
counter, took one look at Marty, gave a happy ‘mrrp!’ and fell over
onto her back. Releasing Belle, Marty squatted down and proceeded
to rub her belly, telling her the whole time what a sexy little
beast she was, which made Holly laugh and Belle, in a few seconds
of insanity, wish she was lying on her back with Marty rubbing her
and telling her what a sexy little beast she was. However, she was
neither sexy, a beast, little, or about to lie on her back for him,
so she used the moment to move away from him with dignity intact.
Unlike Cleo, who didn’t give a hoot about dignity, her furry belly
proffered for Marty’s skilled stroking and her purrs rattling
through the kitchen in unabandoned bliss.

Lucky cat.

“I gotta go.”
Heading for the door, Holly picked up her shoulder bag and helmet
from the kitchen counter. “I’ll see you, Belle.”

“Okay.” Belle
followed her to the veranda, waiting as her friend approached the
motorbike.

In the act of
buckling the chin strap of the motorbike helmet, Holly grinned at
her. “Did he rub your belly when he was boinking you?”

“On your bike,
Holly. Go home.”

Holly winked.
“Have a great weekend with Bad Boy. And I mean have a
great
weekend.” Straddling the bike, she kicked off the brake and brought
the powerful engine to life. “Remember, I want all the details!”
With a laugh and a cheerful wave, she throttled the bike and drove
out of the driveway before giving it full throttle and roaring off
down the street, shattering the quiet with the roar of the
engine.

Standing there,
Belle was intensely aware that inside was Marty, he had an agenda,
and she had no back-up. It was time to face another sexy beast,
this one a bad boy on two strong legs.

Just the
thought made her heart beat pick up.

Great. Just
great.

Taking a deep
breath, Belle turned on her heel and went back inside to face the
sexy, irritating, egotistical beast who lurked in her kitchen with
devious plans in mind.

Chapter 7

Marty was at
the kitchen sink getting water from the tap.

“Why didn’t you
get some from the ‘fridge?” she queried

“Not my place,”
he replied. “I don’t just help myself.”

“Yeah, you
do.”

A slow grin
curving his firm lips, he ran his gaze down her while turning to
lean back against the sink. “Okay. Sometimes.”

He looked
entirely too smug. Time to take him down a peg. She waited until he
had a mouthful of water. “We had unprotected sex yesterday.”

That got a
reaction, all right. Water spurted from his mouth and he coughed
and gagged. Turning quickly, he dropped the glass into the drainer
and covered his mouth as he continued to cough and choke.

Satisfied,
Belle walked around the counter, plucked a clean tea towel from the
rack and handed it to him. Eyes watering, he took it from her and
wiped his face, still coughing. Settling back against the counter
beside him, she plucked the card from her pocket and tapped it
against her palm while watching him without an ounce of guilt.

When he was
finally able to draw breath, he faced her with the tea towel
clenched in one fist. “My mother will kill me.”

Belle’s mouth
fell open in horrified disbelief. “
You’d tell her?
”

“No. But if we
had a child out of wedlock, she’d kill me.”

“This isn’t the
dark ages, Marty.”

“No, but my
parents have set beliefs.” His gaze met hers squarely. “And so do
I.”

“Really?”

“Yes, really. I
don’t father children I have no intention of being around for.”

“Really.”

“Really. For
me, children mean marriage.”

Okay, this was
surprising. Not unheard of, but…well, what did she really know
about it anyway?

“And if the
mother didn’t want me, I’d still be around for my child.” Marty’s
gaze dropped to her stomach. “So if you get pregnant-”

“Cripes, I’m
not going to get pregnant!”

“We don’t
know-”

“I know.
I
know.” Belle tossed the card onto the counter. “I had the
injection.”

“Injection?”

“Instead of
taking the pill daily. When I decided to - you know - with Trevor,
I had the injection.” When Marty just looked at her, Belle lifted
her chin. “It lasts awhile. In fact, it lasted a whole hell of a
lot longer than my relationship did with that two-timing, cheating
bastard, and it’s still lasting, okay? No kids.”

“Okay.” He
nodded, visibly relaxing. “I’m clean.”

Crap. She
hadn’t thought about that. “Great. I’ve got your word for it.”

“Want a letter
from my doctor? I’ll ring him right now. You can even talk to him.”
Marty reached for the phone.

Good God. The
man was serious. “No. I believe you.” And she did. If he was
serious enough to ring his doctor for her peace of mind, to prove
it, then he had to be telling the truth.

He studied her
with one raised eyebrow.

She flushed.
“I’m healthy.”

“Trevor was a
known male slut.”

“Male
slut?”

“My sister’s
term.” He eyed Belle again.

Belle folded
her arms and straightened her spine. “We always used condoms.”

“Hmmmm.”

“Want me to
ring
my
doctor?”

“Yep.”

She was
speechless.

Marty started
laughing.

“You - you -
you arsehole!” She threw the card down onto the counter. “How dare
you-” The rest of her words were muffled by his chest when his arms
wrapped around her and he drew her to him, his laughter filling the
kitchen.