Tough Guy, page 16
Lou moaned as I gripped her hips and moved her faster over me. She dropped her hand to her clit, touching herself like I asked as I lifted my head from the pillow and stared, slack jawed at the absolute wonder of her. She was stunning. Divine. Absolutely fucking radiant.
“Bennet,” she moaned, breathless. “I’m going to come again.”
“Please.” My voice broke, and with it the release of the pleasure she’d built within me. I spilled into her, my fingers digging into her hips as she cried out in her own release, the pulsing of her pussy emptying all of me before she collapsed. Her body dropped and her forehead pressed to my shoulder, sticky with sweat.
Lou lay on top of me, draped across my body, still connected. I didn’t want to leave her.
She's going to leave me. The thought hit hard. I didn't want to pull out of her, to leave her body, but I couldn't forget the fact that soon she would leave me.
Whether or not I wanted it.
“You don’t have to walk me to my door,” Lou said, rolling her eyes at me as I followed a step behind, my hand on her lower back. “It’s like a hundred feet and you can stand in the window and watch me the entire time.”
I grinned, gently pushing her along and nodding forward when she turned to look at me. “I don’t have to walk you to your door, but I want to. Have you never had a gentleman walk you to your door?”
She turned back around to face me. “Actually, no.”
“Then you’ve been with the wrong men,” I said, reaching for her hand and lacing it with mine. She squeezed and gave me a smile, but there was something empty behind it.
“Here we are,” I stated obviously, less than a minute after leaving my apartment.
Lou exhaled, facing me. “Here we are,” she repeated. We stood, goofy grins on both of our faces as we stared at one another, unsure of how to say goodbye. Or maybe unwilling to do it.
“Okay,” I said.
“Okay,” she said.
We held our grins, hands locked together.
“This is where you go inside,” I told her, looking at the door.
She didn’t drop her grin. “Tell me again how doors work, Bennet. It’s fascinating.”
I shook my head, laughing, and pulled her in for a kiss. The velvet of her lips was now familiar, but I didn’t think I’d ever get enough of them. Her mouth was delicious—in feeling and action. From physical touch to the barbed jabs she threw with ease, this woman made me feel like I was punching above weight simply by being in her presence.
I didn’t want to let go of her. I wanted to stay with her on that porch until the stars tucked into a blanket of morning light, disappearing with the first dawn of the sun. Even then I wouldn’t want to leave, staying until those stars reappeared with the fading of the light. Probably not the day after that, either. I considered living on this porch from now on.
“You’re going to be exhausted tomorrow,” she said, releasing her mouth from mine.
I shrugged. “Nothing coffee can’t help.”
“You will not be functional if you’re up all night. Get to bed.” She gave a playful push and stepped back toward the door.
“Lou,” I said, shaking my head. “I’m going to be spending all day thinking about this night. Thinking about you. I could sleep ten hours and I’d still struggle to be functional with all of it rattling through my head. Can I see you after work?”
She stretched her arms wide. “You can see me anytime you want, Bennet. You know where to find me.” She gave a wink and opened the door slowly, pausing as she stood halfway inside. “So come find me after work. Just to be clear.” Her face cracked into a sweet giggle, and it made my heart dance a little.
I stood at the door for a few minutes after she went inside. Not because I thought she would come back out, but because part of me worried that I’d dreamed all of this. I didn’t want to go to sleep and wake up, only to realize it hadn’t happened. Still, Lou hadn’t been wrong, and I did have to be at work in… I checked my watch. Shit. Soon. I watched the door a second longer, then went home.
The sheets of my bed smelled like a mix of our scents, and it made me hard all over again. I groaned, wishing she could stay the entire night with me, but of course she couldn’t. Knowing she was close by was compensation enough, and I fell asleep quickly as the memory of the last hour danced through my mind.
“You better not be naked, asshole.”
I groaned, my head feeling heavy and fogged over. It took me a minute to realize the voice wasn’t in my dreams. It was in my bedroom.
“Get up. Coffee is on in the kitchen.” I heard Logan shuffle to the window, and I winced as he threw the curtains open. Sunlight poured in, spilling into the room and forcing my hand. There’d be no chance for sleep until that sun went down in fourteen hours.
“What the fuck are you doing in my house?” I bit, sitting up and rubbing my face.
Logan grinned and threw a shirt at me. “I slept over at your girlfriend’s house and thought I’d come check on you this morning, make sure you actually got up to go to work.”
Yawning, I stretched and put my shirt on. I was wearing boxers, but I kind of wished I’d slept naked just so I could make Logan uncomfortable. I was a little pissed he woke me up, even though I knew he was doing me a solid. With so many projects going on at work, I really couldn’t afford to get a late start.
“Is Lou up yet?” I asked, yawning again.
“Ah ha!” Logan clapped his hands and pointed at me, his grin even bigger now. “I knew it!”
“Knew what?” I ran my hand through my hair, pressing it down. What a mess. Maybe it was good Lou hadn’t stayed over.
Logan crossed his arms, looking undeservedly smug. “I referred to Lou as your girlfriend and you didn’t think to correct me.”
I opened my mouth to argue, but shut it when I realized I didn’t actually want to argue with him about it.
“Smells like sex in here,” Kyle interrupted, walking into my bedroom as if he too had no concept of privacy.
I groaned and dropped my head in my hands. “Fuck, you guys.”
Kyle grinned. “I tell you, Ben. Imagine my surprise when I disappeared into the bathroom and came out to hear that both you and Lou had slipped out and this guy here was on babysitting duty as he groped our little sister.” Kyle threw his thumb at Logan and shook his head.
Logan blushed immediately, and I squinted, trying to catch up. “I’m sorry, you have to start that over.”
“Oh, okay,” Kyle said, standing up tall and clearing his throat. “I was taking a shit and everyone was accounted for. I came out and you and Lou were both gone. That guy.” He pointed at Logan, who stood looking at the floor. “Said you both went out and wouldn’t likely be back soon. Meanwhile, he’s cozying up with Tabby on his lap like they’re a couple of high schoolers going at it while Mom and Dad are upstairs.” He shook his head and made a tsk sound.
“You were in the bathroom that long?” I asked, surprised only by that fact.
Kyle shrugged. “I really had too much pot roast. Mama has spoiled me. I’m never gonna meet a girl who stacks up, you know?” He clapped his hands. “Coffee?”
I nodded and waved him away. Kyle retreated to the kitchen, whistling as he went, leaving me and Logan alone.
“So, Tabby?” I asked, trying to keep the question light.
Logan inspected his hands, not looking at me. “I think so. Last night was… I think the start of something.”
“Good,” I said with a firm nod and a smile, getting out of bed and trudging toward the kitchen. “Took you long enough.”
“Says the man who took five years to get laid,” Logan mumbled, following me out.
There was no shortage of jokes and teasing over a couple of cups of coffee, and while I certainly would have preferred to wake up with Lou next to me, I couldn’t help but feel like this was pretty good, too.
“Bennet Carlson,” he drawled, his thick accent dragged under a peppered mustache. “We need to talk, son.”
“Tucker,” I said, shoving my hand to offer in greeting. “To what do I owe the pleasure?” I gestured around the construction site behind me. “Something wrong? You don’t usually come to check permits.”
Tucker Florence shook his head, his hands on his hips as he squinted into the sun and then back at me. “No, son. I’m here for other matters. Is there somewhere private we can talk?”
I nodded. “Of course. Just a moment.” I whistled to the crew, letting them know I was stepping away and giving instructions to the apprentice I hired to help fill some gaps in work orders. When I bought the business from Darel, we could hardly land so much as a bathroom remodel. In the three years I’d been running the company, we’d expanded our project borders to Benninghill, Longview, and Paddington. Sometimes beyond if the project was worth it. There wasn’t a day I wasn’t doing something for work, and I could hardly hire fast enough to keep up with demand.
I escorted Tucker to a trailer I used as an office at the planned community housing site we’d been working on for months now. It was my biggest project yet, and we were still at least another six months out from completion.
The trailer was a modest office. Room for my desk with a chair, but no other chairs for sitting. No one stayed in long enough to sit, anyway. A small corner fan blew pointed at the desk, but without AC in the tiny metal box, it felt like we were roasting. It was the only place with four full walls and some containment for sound. I had no idea why Tucker would come see me, but if the sheriff shows up, it’s best to keep your conversation private.
I gestured for Tucker to take the chair, which he comfortably did, leaning back and looking at me as he ran his hand over his mustache.
“What can I do for you, Tucker?” I asked, standing across the desk and holding my hands in the pockets of my jeans. “Am I in some kind of trouble?”
“Oh, good Lord, no, Bennet. You’re not in any kind of trouble, son. With your military record and all the labor you’ve donated to the town for various repairs and the volunteer work to fix the Henderson’s house after that nasty fire… Son, you could probably get away with plenty around here and never see my face come askin’ for you.” He chuckled and leaned back deeper into the chair, a slow squeak following in the wake of his movement.
“I’m actually here about someone you may know. A friend perhaps.” He said it with a raised tone, the implication obvious, and I cleared my throat. Lou. “Do you know a Ms. Emmylou McPherson?” He said her name slowly in a way that made me uncomfortable.
Emmylou. I bit back a smile. She hadn’t told me her full name, and I hadn’t thought to ask, but of course Lou wasn’t her proper name. It was embarrassing to not have thought about it sooner.
“Yeah, I know Lou,” I said, crossing my arms and frowning. “Is she okay? Is she in some kind of trouble?”
Tucker ignored my question, his hand staying on his mustache. “Your mama said she’s been living at your house.”
My mama. I was going to have a word with her after this.
“Yes, sir. She’s been living in the farmhouse.”
Tucker blinked and gave a half smile. “I see. You’ve let someone live in it.”
I felt my impatience growing. Small town meant all business was somebody’s business, and that somebody made sure they told somebody else. It all came back eventually.
“What’s this about, Tuck?” I didn’t have time for games and I worried Lou was in some kind of trouble. She didn’t have a phone, but I could go back to the house after Tucker left and fill her in if I needed to. Shit. I was going to get her a phone after this. How could the woman function without one? Who doesn’t have a phone?
Tucker smiled, though it was anything but friendly. “The thing is, Bennet, Todd Anderson assaulted that woman, and I can’t for the life of me understand why she didn’t want to press charges. Can you?” He sat forward, leaning his elbows on the desk. “It’s quite puzzling, don’t you think?”
I swallowed. I hadn’t realized Lou didn’t press charges. I hadn’t even thought about it, to be honest. I just assumed. Incorrectly.
“I’m sure there’s a good reason for that, Tuck. She’s probably scared of him.”
Tucker nodded slowly, clasping his hands together. “You see, I thought that for a minute, too. But then I met her and that woman doesn’t strike me as being scared of Todd Anderson.” He chuckled briefly. “She fought him, for Pete’s sake, didn’t she?”
I scratched the back of my head. “Yeah,” I conceded.
“Anyway.” Tucker exhaled, looking down at a stack of papers on the desk. “It’s not unusual for a victim to not want to press charges, but it got me thinking. This doesn’t feel right, does it?”
“Seems reasonable to me,” I said, clenching my jaw. Lou was many things, and I was still getting to know her, but the fact she didn’t want to face Todd Anderson did seem odd. She’d been so adamant that men like him couldn’t get away with that kind of shit. I was sure she had a good reason for it, and if she hadn’t told me about it, it was because she hadn’t wanted to. It wasn’t my business why unless she wanted it to be my business.
Tucker sighed. “All that thinking made me realize that none of this feels right. This woman breezes through town, nothing with her except a little girl, and she gets caught up in this mess within days of arriving. I ran a background check on her, but she came back clean. Not so much as a traffic ticket.”
“Sounds like an upstanding citizen to me,” I said. “You run one on me and you’re going to get a list of plenty of tickets and maybe some juvenile petty offenses. What’s the problem?”
Tucker smiled again. “You know, I’d think the same thing, but there’s nothing, Bennet. No bank accounts, no rental history. No nothing.”
I didn’t like where he was going with this. “I’m sure there’s a good reason, Tucker. Is she in some kind of trouble? Is that why you’re dredging this all up?”
He shook his head. “No, she’s not in any kind of trouble. Something’s not right though, Bennet, and you should know that. Your mama said Lou told her she was from Chicago. I’ve reached out to the Cook County Sheriff’s Office in Chicago to see if they can give me any information. In the meantime, I just thought you should know that something might be off about her.”
My jaw clenched tighter. “There’s nothing off about her, Tuck. You need to back off. She didn’t press charges against Todd for whatever reason, and it’s her reason. You're going to bully her, too, just because she’s not doing what you want?”
Tucker held up his hands defensively and bowed his head. “I hear you, son. I’m not looking to upset you. Maybe you could talk to her. Sort it out. Help make sure Todd doesn’t do that to any other young lady.”
I sighed, biting the inside of my cheek. “I know you’re trying to do your job, Tucker, and I know you want Todd to get what’s coming to him.” Tucker nodded, satisfied with that observation. “But that doesn’t mean something is off about Lou, and it certainly doesn’t mean you need to go digging into her without sufficient reason to do so.”
Tucker stood up and nodded at me, walking away from the desk and patting me on the shoulder as he headed out the trailer door. “You’ll do the right thing and talk to her, son.”
It wasn’t a question, and I bit back a retort, watching him leave instead. Lou was her own woman and could make her own choices. Whatever the reason for choosing not to press charges against Todd, they were hers. I would not do Tucker’s bidding. There was nothing off about Lou. She had a history, and when she was ready, she would share it.
Unless she never shared it.
I shook the thought, determined not to let Tucker get into my head. I closed up the trailer and told my crew I was taking off for the day. There were a few grumbles, but no real complaints. I was usually first to the site and last to leave, anyway. Besides, I was the boss, I reminded myself. I got in my truck, slamming the door harder than I intended, gripping the steering wheel as I pulled out of the site and headed toward an electronics store to get Lou a fucking phone.
There was nothing off about her. About any of this. I would not let Tucker get into my head.
Though I feared he was already there.
Thirteen
Lou
“If I ever drink that much again, punch me in the face,” Daphne complained.
A chorus of groans woke me from what little sleep I’d managed. They were faint, but clear, and coming from downstairs.
“Shhh, Lou is coming. She just might,” Kyle joked, watching me walk down the stairs. It probably wasn’t my finest morning to be in the company of others. My mouth was dry, my hair a disaster, and my shorts were on backwards—which I didn’t realize until I was standing in the living room, trying to dip my hands in pockets that weren’t there. Fortunately, no one else noticed because if I was in bad shape, they were in worse condition.
“Good morning!” I sang. Louder groans responded.
Logan shook his head as he came from the kitchen. “You Carlsons think a couple cases of beer on a Sunday night are worth it. It never is. Hey, Lou,” he said, turning to me. “Coffee is on in the kitchen. I gotta get going, but thank you for letting us crash at your house.”
Tabby stood at the couch, folding the pile of blankets I’d put on everyone before going to bed myself. “Yeah,” she said with a smile. “Thanks for everything, Lou.”
Kyle trotted behind Logan. “I’m gonna go borrow Bennet’s toothbrush,” he said, waving. I rolled my eyes and hoped he wasn’t serious.
Daphne followed me into the kitchen, rubbing her head. “All the coffee,” she grumbled. “Give it all to me.”
I poured her the biggest mug in the cupboard and slid it over the counter to her. “Are you going to make your shift today? Do you want me to cover for you?” I had the day off, but I didn’t mind doing her the favor. She looked worse for wear.
She shook her head and waved me off. “No, I’m fine. I’ll have an intravenous drip of coffee, take some aspirin, and be good as new. Besides, Monday mornings are quiet.” She shrugged and took a big sip from her mug and winced. “Hot,” she mumbled. “Darel went out to get bagels. Get me some bread in here and I’ll be right.” She patted her belly.
