Erotic Influence (7 page)

The next morning Rick looked around his home with fresh
eyes. He tried to imagine Annie’s things mixed in with his and instinctively
knew she wouldn’t have much. Would living across the street from her father be
a problem? He hoped not, but moving wasn’t out of the realm of possibility. He
was buying the single-wide trailer he had come to know as home. However, he
could always rent it out and use the income to rent an apartment somewhere
nearby. Right now the most important thing was getting Annie out of her
father’s house so he could have some kind of relationship with her. He refused
to take no for an answer.

Once again his thoughts turned to simply sitting down with
Henry and talking things out. Annie was seriously opposed to it because she
expected failure, but Rick wasn’t so sure. Henry was protective of his
daughters. There was nothing wrong with that at all. If Rick could convince the
man he wanted to protect and care for Annie himself maybe it would go a long
way in dispelling his irrational hatred of Rick. Maybe. Hopefully.

With a growl of aggravation Rick pulled his shoes on and
stepped outside. The bright sunlight was blinding but he didn’t miss the sight
of Henry’s truck across the street. Annie was supposed to be at work but Tammy
was probably in the house too. The urge to go over there and talk to Henry was
strong but he wanted to pass it by Annie. He would need a well-thought-out
speech and she should hear it first.

Rick decided to get one weekend chore out of the way before
the sun got any higher. He pulled his lawnmower out of the small metal shed
behind his house and got to work. His property was just over a quarter acre.
Not quite big enough to necessitate the cost of a riding lawnmower, but damn,
was he tempted. He tried to finish the job quickly and by the time he was done
sweat poured off him. He’d removed his shirt and was standing by his front
porch drinking water when Tammy sauntered across the street.

“Rick,” she called out. “Hey. How’s it going?”

He put down his now-empty bottle and grabbed his shirt,
yanking it on as she closed the distance. “Not bad. What are you up to today?”

She stopped a respectful distance away for once and set her
small hands on her hips. “I wanted to go swimming but Dad says no. Did you hear
anything about someone finding a water moccasin out there last week?”

He cringed and gave a quick nod. “Yup. That was Larry from
down the road. I’m surprised you didn’t hear him screaming all the way to your
house. It scared the crap out of him but luckily didn’t get close enough to
bite. But no one caught or killed the damn thing so it might still be out
there.”

Her pretty blue eyes widened and he suddenly realized she was
makeup free for once. She looked surprisingly like Annie.

“Oh my god! And you and my sister were tramping through the
tall grass looking for me the other day?”

All the blood drained from his head as he realized she was
right. He had completely forgotten about the snake sighting that day. His full
attention had been on Annie, his only concern being near her. “Jesus. We got
pretty damn lucky.”

“I’ll say. Kinda stupid if you ask me. But whatever.”

She rolled her eyes and he bit back a laugh. At least he always
knew where he stood with her. “Yeah, sometimes I’m not too bright.”

She snorted and glanced around at his newly mown yard.
“Looks good. Wanna come do ours next?”

“Yeah right. Why don’t you do it? It’s smaller than mine.”
She grumbled something under her breath. “Huh?”

She crossed her arms and he was surprised when she didn’t
stomp her foot. “I
said
I know it’s smaller. But I don’t wanna do it
’cause it’s freaking hot out here. I mean look at you. You’re covered in
sweat.”

He glanced down though he knew he probably looked awful. His
maroon shirt was darker in spots where the sweat glued it to his skin. “Yup.
You’ve got that right.”

“And anyway. Why shouldn’t I get paid to do it, huh? I mean,
that only seems fair, right?”

This sounded like an old argument and he knew he needed to
tread carefully. Whatever he said might make it back to Henry’s ears.
“Well…maybe.”

“Maybe?”

“Yeah, maybe. Do you pay rent and buy groceries?”

She frowned and her bottom lip pouted out in a look he
guessed had teenage boys dropping at her feet. He just lifted one brow in
challenge.

“No,” she finally said.

“Well, then I think it’s fair enough for you to have to do
some work around the house.”

“I clean all the time.”

“Yeah? The whole house? The dishes? Laundry?”

She put her hands back on her hips. “Annie probably already
told you she’s the one who cooks and does laundry. I help with the dishes at
least. I dry them.”

This time he crossed his arms as the picture formed in his
head of just how much Annie did in her house. It wasn’t pretty and it angered
him. “What else do you do?”

She looked confused for a moment and seemed to actually
think it over. Finally her expression cleared as she thought of something. “I
go to school and have a job.”

“Yeah, one you rarely go to.”

“Whatever.”

“Look, Tammy, all I’m saying is I understand why your dad
expects you to mow without getting paid for it. It’s a chore just like any
other. He works all day to pay the bills so he expects you to pull your weight
with chores.”

“He doesn’t pay
all
the bills. Annie pays like half
of everything and sometimes buys groceries.”

Shock and anger raced through him. “Really?”

He didn’t know what expression was on his face, but Tammy
dropped her arms and took a step back. “Uh…yeah. I mean…I
think
she
does.”

He didn’t believe her backpedaling for a minute. There was
no doubt Annie would have left long ago if she’d been allowed to save her
money. Instead she was paying bills and buying food. Rick shook his head and
tried to clear his anger. Tammy wasn’t the one who deserved to see it.

“Yeah, okay,” he finally said.

She nodded but was still watching him warily. “So, what’s
going on with you two anyway? Are you her boyfriend now or what?”

That brought his attention right back. “Does she say I am?”

“She doesn’t say anything. That’s why I’m asking you. You
know she hasn’t had but one boyfriend before, right?”

He tried to hide his surprise. He hadn’t known that though
he’d suspected. Sex with just one guy, yes. Just one boyfriend all her life?
No. “Yeah…sure.”

She snorted out a laugh and shook her head. “No, you didn’t.
I can tell by the look on your face.” Her amusement died an abrupt death.
“That’s not a problem, right? I mean, that doesn’t change how you feel about
her, does it?”

“Of course not. I care about your sister a lot. Her past
doesn’t matter to me.”

Her smile was immediately back in place. “Good. She cares
about you too.”

“Yeah? Does she talk about me?”

She rolled her eyes and he wondered if they could get stuck
that way. “Not to me. Of course, she really doesn’t talk to any of her friends
anymore so I’m pretty much all she’s got. So I guess that means no.”

“Why doesn’t she talk to her friends?”

For a second her expression blanked. Then she glanced over
her shoulder at her house. The blinds remained closed as did the front door.
She stepped closer and lowered her voice. “Because of Dad mostly. He didn’t
like a couple of them and always gave her a hard time about talking to them. A
couple others he kinda ran off himself. Her best friend Mandy tried to stick
around long after everyone else gave up on her. Finally one day she just
stopped coming by or calling.”

“So she doesn’t have
any
friends? She doesn’t go to
the movies or the park or anywhere other than work?”

“Nope. You and me are it, buddy. I hope you’re in all the way
’cause if you hurt her I’ll be really pissed.”

He admired Tammy’s dedication to her sister. Especially
since he felt the same way. “You’ve got nothing to worry about. I’m not going
anywhere.”

“Yeah? Well then you should probably let her know that. I
think she was confused last night.”

His pulse leapt and real fear filled his gut. “About what? I
thought I made my feelings clear.”

Tammy shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe.”

He wanted to growl in frustration and pull his hair out. But
then a better idea hit him. “Hey, what time does she get off work?”

“I think around five. Why?”

He yanked his phone from his pocket to check the time. “It’s
almost eleven. I wonder if she’s had lunch yet.”

“Probably not. Sam usually makes her go last.”

That had him frowning again even as he gathered his mower
and gas can. “Well I’m gonna jump in the shower and try to make it there before
she goes.”

“All righty. Good luck.”

She gave him a finger wave before trotting back across the
street. By the time he had his equipment put away she was nowhere to be seen.
He just hoped she had really gone into her house and not off down the street
somewhere. The girl was a handful but she was also old enough to know better.
It was about time she started taking responsibility for herself and letting Annie
off the hook a bit.

Rick showered quickly and headed out the door. He stopped by
a florist in the same shopping strip as the grocery store but left the small
bouquet of carnations on his passenger seat along with their lunch. He wasn’t
sure if walking in with them would make her happy or embarrass her. Annie was
so different from his past girlfriends, he was moving blind through the
beginning stages of their relationship. The last thing he wanted was to mess up
so soon.

His gaze shot to her as soon as he walked in the double
glass doors. She was behind a register, checking out a couple he didn’t
recognize. The woman had a baby in her arms and Annie’s gaze kept drifting to
the child after every item she swiped. Rick stood back and watched her. The
baby cooed and Annie’s face lit up with such joy it made his chest hurt.
Amazingly she was even more beautiful in that moment. Was that what she wanted?
Was she already ready for motherhood at such a young age? He hadn’t really
thought about having kids anytime soon. It was definitely something they would
have to talk about.

The couple paid and walked away. Luckily there was no one in
her lane behind them. Rick grabbed a pack of gum and walked up, tossing it on
the conveyor belt. “Hey, pretty lady, working hard?”

Surprise lit her face as well as the same happiness the baby
had elicited. That made him feel slightly better and he wanted to laugh at
himself for being jealous of an infant.

“Rick. I wasn’t expecting to see you today.”

“Yeah, me neither. But I just couldn’t stay away. Have you
had lunch yet?”

She shook her head and looked around the store. “Um, I
probably have to wait a bit. I think Frank gets to go before me.”

He followed her gaze to a lanky teenager who was checking
customers out three registers away.

“Okay, no problem. Another hour? Two?”

“Maybe an hour and a half. Let me find out.”

She walked over to Frank and waited for him to finish. Then
the boy turned to face her. Rick watched their conversation, not missing the
interest in Frank’s gaze as Annie spoke to him. The boy was probably no more
than sixteen but he obviously had good taste. A hint of jealousy gnawed at Rick
but he shoved it aside. Frank was definitely no threat.

Annie made her way back to him and stepped behind her
register again. He wanted to touch her but knew this wasn’t the time or place.

“He’s only taking thirty minutes today and he’s going now,”
she said. “Do you mind waiting that long?”

“Not at all. Can I stand here and talk to you between
customers?”

She looked around again, seemed satisfied with what she saw,
and nodded. “Sure.”

“Good. I’ve been thinking about you all morning.”

A pretty blush filled her face and she lowered her head. But
she couldn’t hide her smile. “Yeah?”

“Yeah. Any chance you’ve been thinking about me too?”

“Oh yeah. A lot. It’s been hard to concentrate on work.”

He chuckled. “Trust me, I understand the feeling.”

They spent the next thirty minutes making small talk between
her few customers until Frank finally returned. Annie clocked out and Rick
walked her to his car. He couldn’t wait to get out of there. He had her all to
himself for an hour and his cock was already hard.

Annie’s eyes drifted shut as she slowly crested a wave of
sensual pleasure. Her breathing was labored, not only from Rick’s expert
fingers, but from the humidity drifting in through the open car windows. They
were parked at the end of a dead-end road that faced an open pasture. Cows
grazed lazily in the distance, paying no mind to the car or the humans in it.

“God…Rick.”

“Mmm, yeah, baby.”

She gripped his thighs, so strong and solid beneath hers,
and widened her legs as he slowly rubbed her slickened clit. She was so close,
it wouldn’t take much more. As if he’d heard her thought, Rick pinched her clit
between two fingers and gave her the bit of pressure she needed to go off like
a rocket. She screamed his name and climaxed as he held on tight. The hand not
playing between her thighs was spread across her waist, pinning her in place on
top of him.

With the driver’s seat pushed all the way back and reclined
they barely fit. But it was enough room for him to pull off her pants and
panties and have some fun. Now she lay panting on top of him, knowing the
minutes were slipping by too fast.

“Oh. Wow.”

He chuckled and kissed her temple. “Feel better?”

She had confessed to a stressful morning. This was his way
of relieving some of that stress.

“Yes. God, yes. Do I ever.”

He chuckled again and placed both palms on her naked thighs.
The warmth sent a shiver up her spine. All she wanted to do now was curl into a
ball on his lap and fall asleep. The safety of his arms was a wonderful
aphrodisiac and sleeping aid. However, the hardness beneath her bottom couldn’t
be ignored. He hadn’t said a word about it, but she wanted more than anything
to please him too.

It took quite a bit of maneuvering to get into a good
position, but soon she was kneeling on the floorboard between his legs. Both
eyebrows shot up to his hairline as she unbuttoned his jeans. “Annie, you don’t
have to—”

“I want to. If it’s okay with you?”

He grinned. “Hell yeah it is. But you can’t be comfortable
down there.”

True, the steering wheel was pressing into the back of her
head. Luckily he had raised it or this might not have worked at all. Other than
that she was just glad the car was turned off so her toes on the pedals
wouldn’t matter.

“It’s okay. I’m fine,” she said.

He nodded and said nothing else as she pulled down his
zipper. He lifted his hips so she could pull jeans and briefs down enough to
free his cock. It stood proudly erect and hard as stone, waiting for her
attention. A small drop of moisture at the tip caught her eye and she licked it
off slowly. He hissed and then groaned, throwing his head back as she ran her
tongue over his slit. This wasn’t an act she had done very many times. Her one
boyfriend had enjoyed it but she had been too embarrassed to do it for him more
than a couple of times. That might have been why he hadn’t argued about the
breakup.

“Mmm, baby, that’s so good,” Rick whispered.

The pleasure in his voice thrilled her and gave her the
courage to take the head into her mouth. He seemed a little bigger than what
she remembered of her last boyfriend. He stretched her lips but it wasn’t as
uncomfortable as she feared. Slowly, so as not to hurt either of them, she
lowered her head as far as she could take him into her mouth. It was an odd
sensation. His warmth and unique taste flooded her senses. He groaned and his
hands ghosted over her hair. She wondered if he was trying not to grab her.

She moved her head up and then back down slowly, savoring
her lips on his skin. Once she reached the top she let him slip from her mouth
so she could lick the head again. He really seemed to like that. She used one
hand to grip the base of his erection and with the other she cupped his balls.
They were a soft, welcome weight in her palm. Holding him so intimately sent a
thrill of power through her. She squeezed them lightly and rolled them gently
between her fingers. Then she went back to sucking on his cock.

Rick’s eyes rolled back. He had to grip the door with one
hand and the passenger’s seat with the other to keep from reaching for Annie’s
head instead. He didn’t want to pressure or frighten her. So he needed to keep
his hands to himself no matter how fucking good her mouth felt. But god was it
good. There was just enough hesitation in her movements to tell him this wasn’t
something she did often, but she was trying. He finally opened his eyes to look
down at one of the most erotic sights of his life, and nearly came right then.

Her hair was still in a ponytail and her eyes were closed.
Her moans as she moved her mouth on him told of the pleasure she was finding in
the act. Both soft hands were busy between his legs. He wished they had hours
instead of minutes. Not that it would take much longer. As he watched her pink
tongue wrap around the head of his cock, he felt the telltale signs of an
impending orgasm. His spine tingled and his gut clenched. He gripped his
handholds harder and thrust his hips slightly.

“Baby, move your hand up and down. Fuck yeah…just like
that.”

She started jerking him off, bringing her tongue into the
play by swiping it over his slit. He groaned and jerked his hips faster even as
she took the hint and altered her fisting. Not much longer now. He was going to
come so fucking hard.

“Yeah…baby….fuck yeah.”

And then it was there, shooting out of his cock like a
volcano. His seed spilled over her fist as she kept pumping it out of him. He
growled in pure pleasure as she leaned forward and licked some from the source.

“Aww, fuck.” His head dropped back and he lay panting. He
motioned with one hand in the general direction of his glove compartment.
“N-napkins…in there.”

Her hands played another second, sending a shiver up his
spine. Then she crawled over him and into the passenger’s seat. He wanted to
call her back. It didn’t take long before he felt the rougher touch of some
fast-food chain’s napkins on his skin. He lifted his head to find her gently
cleaning him off. “You don’t have to do that.”

She just smiled. “I want to.”

He nodded and remained still and quiet as she finished the
job. When she was done he helped her back onto his lap. She kissed him slow and
deep before returning to the passenger’s seat. He was aching to stop her when
she slipped her panties and pants back on.

“Damn,” he said. “I didn’t get to taste your nipples this
time.”

A pretty blush filled her face as she laughed. “Next time.”

“Damn straight. You ready to eat the lunch I brought you
now?”

The flowers had nearly put her in tears but the food had
made her laugh in surprise. Somewhere in the back of his memory was Tammy
mentioning how much her sister loved Chinese food.

“Yeah. I’m hungry,” she said quietly.

He readjusted his clothes before grabbing the bag from the
backseat. Soon they were busy stuffing their mouths with the lukewarm food.

“Thank you, this is delicious,” she said.

“You’re very welcome. Tammy told me Chinese is your
favorite.”

“Yeah? I didn’t know you two ever talked about me. Usually
she’s too busy talking about herself.”

He chuckled and took a sip from his water bottle. “Yeah, she
is her favorite subject.”

They shared a laugh and finished eating. Too soon it was
time to head back to the store. He hated that she worked on the weekends but
completely understood the need. Hopefully working for Wes even a couple of
times would ease her burden. She hadn’t said anything else about it, but he
planned to set it up within the next couple of days. He couldn’t wait to see
her delectable body under a spotlight.

“Rick?”

“Hmm?”

She smiled as if she knew he had been thinking about her. “I
asked if you’ll be home tonight.”

“Oh, sorry, babe. Yeah, I should be. Do you think you can
come over?”

They were sitting in front of the store and she had to clock
back in within minutes. She glanced out the window before facing him again.
“Yeah. I hope so. Have you talked to your friend…about the modeling?”

“Not yet. I’ll call him when I get home to set everything
up.”

She nodded, looking a little less nervous than when they had
talked of it before. “Okay.”

“Is your dad picking you up from work?”

“Yeah.”

“I don’t suppose he’d let me do it instead?”

Her smile disappeared and she immediately shook her head. “I
wouldn’t even ask him. Please. He’s been really grumpy lately.”

That almost made him laugh. As far as he could tell Henry
had been grumpy the whole four months Rick had lived across the street. “Okay.
No problem. Promise to try to come over tonight?”

She sighed in obvious relief and nodded. “Yes. I promise.”

He leaned toward her and she met him halfway for a soft,
lingering kiss. Then she broke away and opened her door. “Gotta go. Thanks for
lunch.”

“You’re welcome. See you later.”

It was on the tip of his tongue to say the other three
words. As he watched her walk into the store he nearly choked on them. Was she
ready to hear that yet? He just didn’t know.

* * * * *

It took most of the remainder of her shift for Annie to
focus back on work. Rick was never far from her thoughts. He brought out a
sense of recklessness in her she had never felt before. He could probably talk
her into anything in that deep, confident voice of his. Sex in a car? Never in
her life had she considered it until just that afternoon. Now she could hardly
wait to see where their next encounter would be. It was exhilarating to be so
daring. Her dad would have a heart attack…right after he shot Rick.

She went through the motions of closing out her register as
her shift ended. If only Rick could have picked her up, but she wasn’t brave
enough to broach the subject with her dad just yet. Sure, Rick was more than
willing to talk to him man-to-man. The only problem was she didn’t think her
dad would give him the time of day. For no obvious reason he had disliked Rick
the moment he first saw him drive up in his muscle car. Her dad had sat on
their porch and watched the whole time Rick and his buddies had moved
everything into the house across the street. The neighborly thing would have
been to walk over and at least introduce himself. Not only had Henry not done
that, he had forbidden his daughters from talking to Rick at all. It took less
than twenty-four hours for Tammy to break that rule.

Annie had been a lot slower to defy their father, not just
because she knew better but also because Rick had scared her. He was so
handsome and confident, with such a commanding presence. His constant grin had
always made her wary, as if there were a private joke he didn’t want to share.
Now she knew the grin hid nothing more than his usual good mood and a hint of
recklessness. That grin filled her dreams as much as his dark hair and eyes.

She smiled to herself as she clocked out but was sure to let
it fade away before stepping out the doors. Her dad’s truck was idling at the
curb, sounding as impatient as its owner usually did. She tried to remember a
time when her dad smiled and laughed, a time when he wasn’t constantly yelling
or complaining. She couldn’t.

She pulled open the rusted door and cringed as it protested
loudly. It always made her feel like an intruder crawling into the belly of a
beast.

“Hurry up,” Henry said. “I wanna get home and watch the
news.”

She hopped onto the seat and shut the door, grabbing the
seat belt just as he pulled away from the curb. The motion had her swaying
against the door and she yanked her seat belt on quickly.

“Thanks for picking me up.” She had to almost yell to be
heard over the noise of the truck and the sounds coming in the open windows.
The air conditioner had gone out when she was still in high school and her dad
had never had it fixed. By August riding in the truck would be almost
unbearable.

Henry simply grunted in response and drove home without a
word. Some days he never said a single thing to her. His disapproving glare was
often all she needed to remember what a disappointment she was to him. Though how
holding down a job and paying half the bills could disappoint him she didn’t
know. He never really explained his feelings on the subject. He just yelled and
cursed half the time and ignored her the other half. It was almost routine now,
a dance Annie had finally learned the steps to after twenty-three years. But
now she was tired of dancing and just wanted something new.

She glanced at Rick’s driveway as her dad turned into
theirs. Rick’s car was gone, the cover neatly folded on his front porch. A stab
of disappointment hit her but she pushed it away. She couldn’t feasibly make it
over there yet anyway. She had to get dinner on the table and then clean the
kitchen. Tammy was sitting on the porch waiting for them as they walked up.

“Hey, Daddy, hey, sis. Doesn’t the yard look awesome?”

Annie snorted out a laugh as she looked at the newly cut
lawn. Tammy couldn’t do anything without hearing praise for it.

“Sure does, punkin,” Henry said. “Good job.”

He ran his palm over her head as he passed and walked into the
house. Annie ignored the bite of jealousy that always shot through her when he
did things like that. He’d never had a problem showing Tammy his love and
affection. It was just his older daughter he left in the cold.

“Hey, your boyfriend left you a note.”

Annie’s attention snapped back to her sister, who was
grinning from ear to ear. “What?

Tammy rolled her eyes. “I
said
, Rick left you a note.
I put it on your bed.”

Annie jogged up the steps and nearly ran to the door.

“Nice flowers, by the way,” Tammy called after her.

The interior of the house was cool and dark, cutting off her
sight from the contrast to the outside. She halted just inside the door and
blinked to adjust her sight before heading to her room. As promised, the
bouquet of carnations and a small envelope were sitting on her bed. She
couldn’t help but smile as she carefully opened it and pulled out the note.