I jerk from his hold but stay rooted as I watch Scott jump into his car and speed off. Looking around, I see a good portion of the town staring at us, probably having seen most of what just went down.
I don’t know much about Law other than Joey might be head over heels for the guy, judging by the song she was singing this morning at work. But how could he let a shit like Scott marry Penelope?
“You’re going to let that pompous fuck marry your little sister?” The distaste is clear in my voice.
“Stay out of it, Paine. This is family business you don’t know anything about.”
“I know a man like Scott would ruin a woman like her.”
“I agree,” he says, and starts to walk away. I grab him by the shoulder like he did to me moments ago.
“You agree?” I’m being loud, and I don’t give a shit who hears us, but apparently Law does because he leans in closer to me.
“I’m doing what I can but trying to keep my hands clean. It’s not your concern. Like you said, she’s my sister.”
“She my woman.”
“I don’t believe town gossip,” he says, referring to the whispers running around town. “I’ve also never heard my sister even utter your name, so to me she’s not your anything.”
It’s on the tip of my tongue to tell him she moaned my name over and over just today, but I won’t make what I have with her dirty. What we have and what we’ve done is special, and I won’t throw it around like that. It might be dirty between us, but between us is where it fucking stays.
“Please, Sherriff. Tell me where Dipshit and Penelope are going tonight and I’ll make sure she doesn’t end up with him. I’ll make it my life’s mission to keep her from making a mistake and walking down the aisle with that piece of shit.” I can see the hesitation in his eyes as he looks away and looks back at me. “Don’t let her do this.”
He takes a deep breath, making a decision, and nods his head.
“Deal.”
Eight
Paine
That’s it. I’m done fucking around. I tried being nice and talking sweet, but I’m through with that. I don’t care why she’s marrying that douche. It’s over.
I’ve got my bike parked in front of Lucinda’s, the fancy Italian place two towns over. It’s funny that Scott is willing to fuck Tammy in the middle of our small town, but he makes the woman he’s supposed to be getting married to have someone drive her almost an hour away. It’s as if Penelope is the dirty secret, and that thought makes me even madder. She’s mine, and she’s something to be proud of.
I wait for a long time until I finally see a dark town car pull up and Penelope step out. Scott still isn’t here, but as the driver pulls away, I’m guessing the plan was for him to drive her back home. That thought has me off my bike in a flash and crossing the street to get to her.
Penelope is in a black dress and black heels. Her blonde hair is pulled into a tight knot at the nape of her neck, and it looks like she’s got on a ton of make-up. She looks like she’s a different person than the sweet sexy girl I had breakfast with this morning. I hate it.
When I get to the front of the restaurant, she turns and faces me, the shock clear in her eyes.
“Paine? What are you doing here? You have to leave. Scott is going to be here any second.”
“I don’t give a fuck.” I grab her by the wrist and pull her behind me, walking towards my motorcycle. I turn around and take off my leather jacket, holding it out for her to take. “Put this on and climb on the back.”
“Paine.” There’s a plea in her eyes, and as she looks over her shoulder to the restaurant and then turns back to look at me, indecision runs through her mind. “It’s not that I don’t want to go because believe me, I do. It’s because I can’t.
“Duchess, I don’t know what’s happening with you and that dipshit, but the wedding isn’t happening. You’re mine, so get your ass on the back of my bike. You’re coming home with me tonight and every night after.”
“This is ridiculous.” She stomps her foot when she says the last word, and it makes me smile. “I can’t go with you. Things could go really bad for me if I don’t do this.” She takes a small step towards me, and her eyes plead with me again. “I want more than anything to run away, but this isn’t just about me.”
I reach out, grabbing her chin, and keep my eyes locked with hers. I don’t want her to miss anything I’m about to say because this is crucial.
“Do you trust me, Penelope?”
I see little tears start to form in her eyes, but they don’t fall. She just nods her head as I hold her in place.
“Then trust that no matter what is happening, I’ll take care of it. I’ve got all the money you could ever need and a house to keep you in. There isn’t anything I won’t do to make you happy, and no lengths I won’t go to fix what’s hurting you. You’re mine, that’s the bottom line. Now you tell me, do you feel what’s between us?”
She closes her eyes to try and shut out my words, but I squeeze her chin a little and she opens them back up. After just a second, she nods.
“That’s right, Duchess. This isn’t a bit of fun. This isn’t a fling. This is real. Now, you getting on my bike or do I have to tie you to it? Because I brought rope.”
She takes a deep breath and I release her chin, holding out my leather jacket to her once again. She looks at it and then reaches out, taking it and putting it on.
I turn around, get on my bike, and sit there, waiting for her to come with me. She turns and looks at the restaurant one last time before climbing on behind me, and I crank it up. It’s in that moment Scott pulls up and gets out of his car.
“Take your hair down, Duchess. I want it blowing in the wind on the back of my bike, and I want that fucker to see it so he knows.”
After a second I feel her warm hands come around my waist and her front press to my back. I pull out of my parking spot just as Scott turns and spots us. When we pass by, I reach one hand back, running it up Penelope’s thigh, and make sure he’s sees she’s mine.
Game over, Dipshit.
I keep my hand there the whole way back to my house, holding on to my girl.
“You’re gonna tell me everything after I have you in our bed. We clear?”
She nods, and I pick her up off my bike and hold her as I walk inside. Her legs go around my waist and her arms around my neck. The feeling of her pressed against me as we rode was wonderful, but I’m looking to press against her in a lot of other ways.
I take her through the main entrance and walk her down the long hallway to my bedroom. Once there, I stand her up in the middle of the room and take a step back.
“I want you to go into that bathroom and take off that dress you wore for him, and then I want you to wash your face. You’re too beautiful to hide under all that stuff, and I want to see the real you. After that, you come out here and lie on my bed with your legs open.” I reach out and touch her blonde locks, which are down and windblown. “You ready to do that for me? Give me that virgin pussy?”
She looks away as a blush creeps across her cheeks, and goddamn if it doesn’t make me harder. After just a second she nods and then walks past me to the master bath. I watch her go in there and shut the door, and I walk to my closet to undress. I pull off my white V-neck shirt and kick off my boots and jeans. I keep on my boxer briefs for now, wanting her to take them off me. I run my fingers through my dirty-blond hair and then over my dark-blond beard, thinking about what I’m going to do to her.