Brother's Keeper (19 page)

We have a good forty-five minute drive, and it is nearing ten o’clock already. She looks tired but content as I help her back into the Jeep, leaning to her mouth for one last taste before we head home. She starts to doze on the trip as I mindlessly stroke her hand with mine. When we get home, I lead her upstairs to bed and pull her dress off. I unfasten her bra as she shrugs out of it with a stretch and a yawn. I quickly strip out of my jeans and shirt and join her. We are out in moments.

Chapter 17

I’m up early and out the door before she wakes the next morning. I have an early morning meeting with my advisor to review my thesis before I head to Grand Rapids for another day at the DA’s office. Sara’s birthday dinner is this evening, and I have a lot to get done before I can meet my family and Rowan at the restaurant. At lunch, I call to check in with Rowan to see what she is up to, and I’m instantly happy just to hear her voice. I apologize for not being home when she woke that morning, before assuring her I’ll see her that night. When five o’clock finally rolls around, I head out the door and rush off to meet my family.

I enter the restaurant, a great little French place in the heart of Grand Rapids, and I’m directed to my waiting family. My parents stand to greet me, my mother kissing my cheek and my father shaking my hand. I hug Sara, wishing her a happy birthday before casually taking the chair next to Rowan and perhaps not so casually saying hi to her. My parents order a bottle of wine as Sara steals drinks from my glass every time my parents look away. They’re not fooled, but begrudge her this small treat; she is eighteen, after all.

We talk and eat and talk some more. When the conversation turns to my next trip to Colorado, Rowan stills beside me, and her mood shifts—perhaps not perceptible to anyone but me, but it is an obvious settling of her spirit. When Sara starts talking about hers and Rowan’s plans for next year, my mood begins to shift. Rowan makes it understood that she notices as she crosses her leg and allows her foot to hook behind my calf and caress me—terribly bold of her. I’m impressed. I steal a look at her with gratitude in my eyes for her much needed touch. We both look up to see a quizzical look cross my mother’s face before we both glance away, blushing.
Oops.
My mother lets it go quickly before returning to Sara’s excited chatter about school and Ann Arbor.

Sara and Rowan will be getting an off-campus apartment of their own when they move to Ann Arbor, and my parents are thrilled they’ll be together. My parents trust Rowan’s judgment and know she’ll be a good and faithful friend to Sara. They know just how much Sara cares for Rowan as well. And an idea settles into my mind as I listen to their conversation.

I still have to deal with the aftermath of my moving away to Colorado and where Rowan will stay for the summer, but if I can get my parents to go along with this little idea of mine, I might just have that problem solved. I’m resolved to speak with them about it as soon as we’re away from Sara and Rowan. I don’t want to get Sara’s hopes up, and knowing Rowan will understand my ulterior motive, I want to give her no chance to argue.

Sara asks her to spend the night, so they can
“study”
, which is code for hang out and do nothing productive at all, and Rowan agrees as disappointment hits me like a fist to the stomach. Rowan drove herself, so once dinner is over, Sara is anxious to be on her way. The last I see of Rowan that night is her backward and somewhat lingering and begrudging glance as Sara pulls her from the table. I’ll miss her tonight as I always do when we are apart, but I’m thankful for the opportunity it has afforded me to set my plan into motion.

Once they’ve rounded the corner and are out of view, I open my mouth to speak, but before I do, my mother, perceptive as always, launches an inquisition. “Honey, are you okay? You seem different lately… I don’t know why, just different.”

“I’m fine. I’m just busy and have a lot to do before the move.”

“Is there anything you need to talk to us about?” Damn leading questions, and her stare is penetrating.

As I glance around, trying not to let my unspoken emotion register on my face, I respond. A bold lie, but a response all the same. “Nope. I’m fine. Really.” She still has the penetrating stare.

But she gives it up and turns and speaks to my father. “Aren’t you glad Row will be with Sara next year, Marcus? I feel so much better knowing they’ll be together.” And as my father agrees, her eyes snap right back on me, gauging my reaction to her words.
Shit!
I look away nervously, but not before my eyes catch hers one more time. She isn’t upset, just inquisitive and perplexed. That’s my mother. Not much gets past her, especially when it comes to the emotional part of being human.

But I have a mission, and I intend to stay on course. So I continue. “What would you think of letting Sara stay at my apartment for the summer? Of course, Row could have the second bedroom. They’ll be living together come next fall anyway. It might be a fun way for them to spend the summer. They’re going to be on their own come next fall. Think of it as a trial run for next year.”

My mom’s eyes are narrow and watching me—still intent on trying to read my mind. I give the performance of my life and coolly look right back at her. Like I said, this is a mission, and an important one at that. My father weighs this and speaks while my mother still tries to work me over with her Jedi mind tricks. “I don’t know. What do you think, Ronnie? I wouldn’t have a problem with it. They’d still be close, and quite frankly, there’s little difference whether we rent it out early summer or late. Ronnie?” And still she is studying my face. “Ronnie?” My father again, finally capturing her attention.

She weighs in. “I don’t have a problem with it as long as you’re okay with it. It will be nice to keep them close but give them their freedom. Maybe this will help me adjust to the separation next fall… I have to let them go eventually, after all.” And again, eyes boring holes into my brain. She’s the one who should have been the lawyer.

My plan worked out perfectly, so I need only sit back and let it run its course. My parents will tell Sara, and Sara will, of course, tell Rowan. If I’m lucky, it will never get back to Rowan that it was my idea. My fear is she’ll feel bad for my concern or … what? I don’t know what. I just don’t want to take the chance she’ll turn this down. And the more she thinks it is coming from Sara and my parents, the more willing she will be to go along with it. That seems backward. She’s my lover. Yet she so readily and easily disagrees with me. Shouldn’t it be easier for me to convince her of such things than others? But then, it never has been easy to get her to go along with my ideas. I doubt I’d want her any other way, though. I like her feisty and determined, so long as she’s pliant and agreeable in my bed.

Chapter 18

I don’t see Rowan again until late the next evening when she gets home from her lesson with Anthony. She comes in wearing a zip-up sweatshirt over her leotard and tights and a pair of yoga pants. Her hair is still up in a high bun, and she looks amazing. Her porcelain pale skin is shown off so perfectly when her hair is pulled up this way. The delectable lines of her neck make me instantly want to taste her skin, and I’m ready for her the moment she approaches me on the couch. I pull her to my lap so she’s straddling me, and I can feel her warmth as she presses against my hard, anxious cock. I pull her hips hard to meet my erection and lean into her waiting neck. Soon her sweatshirt is on the ground, and I have only to peel her out of her leotard to get to her nipples. They are taught and tight, ready to be touched. But as I pull the straps of her leotard down her shoulders, she stays my hand.

And with a bite of her lower lip she explains the interruption. “I’m sweaty and smell disgusting.” Humph. I’ll take her smelling any damn way I can get her, but as I return to her straps, shaking off her comment, she stops me again with a small smile. “Please. I’m too self-conscious when I’m this sweaty and gross. Can I just take a shower first?”
Hmm. Rowan in the shower… Don’t mind if I do.

I say nothing, swiftly lifting her from my lap and marching her off to my bathroom. Having started the shower, I return to de-clothe her, peeling her yoga pants to the ground. Her leotard and tights are all that remain between me and the body I so desperately want to touch. Having been admonished for touching her too much when she’s sweaty, I decide to respect her space—but only so long as I enjoy myself in the process. I start directing my most favorite show. Rowan … naked Rowan.

“Turn around,” I challenge, hoping she’s having a self-confident day. After appraising me for a moment, she turns slowly around. Her leotard cuts fairly narrow on the rear, and the contrast between the light colored tights and the black leotard gives an impressive view of the roundness of her cheeks. It’s a struggle not to approach her and pull her leotard and tights down in one swift move to leave her naked in front of me, but I want to see her do this for me.

“Now, slowly pull your leotard down. Leave your tights on.” She obeys to a tee, and before long I’m admiring her impressive ass through the opaque material of her tights. Her cheeks are visible under the tight fabric, and I swallow my desire painfully, wanting nothing more than to touch her.

“Now your tights—slowly. Bend over to your feet when you pull them down.” This gives her a moment of pause as she nervously plays this one out in her head before complying. I want to see her exposed to me—every last inch of her. She starts peeling her tights down, bending completely as she pushes them down to her ankles.

When they are off her feet, she starts to right herself, but not before I stop her. “Spread your feet apart, keep your legs straight, and touch your ankles.” Again she is weighing my words and trying to visualize exactly what she’s getting herself into. After a moment, she steps her legs out to the side and bends back down to her ankles. I can now see every inch of her ass, anus and all.

The beautiful lips of her pussy are oh-so-visible between the junction of her legs, and I want to reach out to her waiting hole so bad it’s a physical pain in my groin. Instead, I do the next best thing. “Now reach down and spread your pussy lips for me.”

She hesitates only a moment before parting her lips with her fingers, so I can see the pink slick skin of her folds. Her entry is begging to be touched—begging to be fucked. Again, she can’t hide the wetness that has escaped in her need. My cock is throbbing for her, but the lady wishes for a shower, so she’ll get a shower. Afterward, I will absolutely put her through her paces for making me wait.

“You sure you want a shower?” I taunt, but before giving her a chance to answer, I approach her and touch the small of her back. “Get in. We wouldn’t want to waste water, would we?” At that, she finally rights herself, gives me my favorite shy smile, and steps in the shower stall.

I grab the towel she’s left folded on the floor next to the tub and go to the bathroom counter to wait. I strip my clothes off and leave them heaped on the floor and wait as patiently as my cock will allow.

A few minutes later, I see her hand reach down to the place her towel should be. Not finding it there, she peers out from behind the curtain at the towel I hold in my outstretched hand, and another precious smile creeps across her face. I’m a few feet away from her, forcing her to step out naked into the space between us. As I smile mockingly at her, she returns it with her sweet, innocent one. I desperately want to feel her naked body against mine after two days apart, and I don’t have to wait long. As she closes the space between us, I pull her tight into my arms, not wanting even a millimeter of space between us. Her body feels amazing, albeit dripping with water from her shower.

I finally pull away from her and hold her at arm’s length to look at her. Her chest is rising and falling, slow and deep, as water still trickles down her skin, and she continues to watch me expectantly. I know she’s turned on from the pre-shower show, and as I lean down to kiss her, I find my own neediness is going to be hard to control. I thrust my tongue deep into her warm mouth, finding it impossible to satiate my need to overcome her body. She runs her hands over my back and down to my hips where she pulls my body to hers. I guess she’s needy, too.

She doesn’t waste a second before she begs me for the one thing I won’t give her. “Please make love to me.” She desperately wants this, and the pain of my restraint is excruciating. I lean down and kiss her again and let her hands explore my body. When she reaches my hard erection, she wraps her hand as far around my shaft as she can and starts to stroke. This is my heaven, and I know it will be nearly impossible not to fuck her.

As the intensity of our kissing heightens, so does her demanding touch. She wants to be fucked very badly, and in an attempt to keep myself from throwing her on the floor and giving her what she wants, I turn her body to face the counter and mirror, taking my place behind her. I start to kiss her neck while my erection teases her back and hips. I watch her beautiful face in the mirror with wonderment that I’ve missed her so much after only a couple of days apart. I caress her breasts as she watches my every move. This isn’t enough for her, and she keeps reaching back for my cock, wanting me to give into her wishes.

I move her hands back to the counter as a resigned look comes over her face, and she lets out a slow deep breath. Understanding is now upon her. “You won’t make love to me, will you?” The disappointment is clear on her face.

I slowly shake my head from side to side without saying a word. The look of hurt on her beautiful face is evident and painful to see. She must know by now my attraction for her is very real and very powerful, and there is no reason to feel rejected. But the look on her face tells me she has no idea. She continues her questioning. “But you’re obviously not saying we can’t be together at all?”

I shake my head. “I’ve already tried that approach enough times to know I would fail miserably.”

She can’t help but object. “But I want it to be you.”

I try to calm her fears. “What if I promise to make it up to you in other ways?” She returns my gaze with her own confused look before I continue.