Fighting (44 page)

"He'll
think he's tracking me but when he goes looking, he'll find a random woman
instead," I explained.

Ethan
ran the wand over my body again, and after he was satisfied that I wasn't
bugged, we raced down the walkway and right into another shop.  We did that
with two more shops and then finally to our car that was parked in another
alley.  We jumped in and Ethan drove us back to the cabin as Spencer and I
turned in our seats to scan the streets around us constantly in an effort to
spot a tail. 

"We're
good," Spencer said after we were halfway there.

"I
don't see anyone either," I said.

Spencer
faced the front but I remained vigilant, knowing that Fletcher was the subtle
type.  Or at least he thought he was.  I finally relaxed as he parked in the
driveway and we climbed out.  Ollie and Brooks were sitting on the couch in
front of two laptops, looking closely at something Ollie was pointing to on the
screen.  August was lying on the couch, staring out at the waves through the
bay window.

"So
we know what he wants," Spencer said.

"For
all of us to switch sides," August said as she sat up.

"Almost
all of us," Ethan said.

"Count
yourself lucky," I said.

He
pinned me with his stare.  "Not so much," he grumbled meaningfully.

I
shook my head in self-reproach.  "Right, sorry," I muttered.

"You
did okay, but I'm afraid you've only made him more determined," Brooks
said to me.

"How? 
I was courteous enough!" I argued.  "I even let him give me the whole
pitch before I said no."

"In
the beginning, you were more apathetic than courteous, but that wasn't the
problem.  It's when he criticized Ethan and how you reacted.  You're loyal to a
fault, and even if you didn't mean to, you advertised that when you defended
Ethan."

"And
Fletcher is looking to buy," Ollie said.

"For
fuck's sake, I'm not for sell!" I fumed.

"What
was she supposed to do?  Throw me to the sharks?  Seem more available?"
Ethan asked calmly.

I
loved how he kept his cool, but sometimes it made me want to shake him with
frustration because I couldn't do the same.

"It
would have made you seem less appealing.  Men with power typically want more
power, and he thinks that you can give him that, especially if he wins you over
and steals you from someone else.  Especially if he takes you from
two
men; my team and Ethan's bed."

I
was too angry to feel shock at Brooks being so casual about Ethan and me.

"The
hell he will," Ethan swore.

"How
did this happen?" I asked, flirting with becoming hysterical.  "All I
did was say no, thank you to his thinly veiled offer of sex at a party, and now
we're being hunted like criminals by another criminal!  This is crazyhouse
crazy!"

Ethan
knew not to tell me outright to calm down, so he sidestepped behind me and ran
soothing hands over my shoulders and the back of my neck.  It was the right
move on his part, because I instantly made an effort to control my temper and
breathing that were both escalated.

"I
agree," Ollie said.  "We all do.  But that doesn't change the fact
that it's still happening."

"Men
have killed for much less," Brooks said.  "I know that you were
trying to turn him off when you purposely uncensored yourself, but that seemed
to have made him want to discipline you back into the graceful and refined
woman you appeared to be at the ball."

"Shit!"
I shouted.  I slammed my fist against the wall.  "I can't win with this
guy!"

At
that, Ethan rounded my front and grabbed my fists.  "Lex, I'm done tending
to injuries this asshole causes you.  Calm down," he said in a heavy
voice.

And
I realized then that he wasn't keeping his cool, he was just really good at
hiding his anger.  Ollie was saying something about the bug that was on me as I
dropped my head back and then pressed my forehead against his neck.  He wrapped
his arms around me and ran his hands up and down my back.  I marveled at the
effect of his touching me.  He seemed to absorb my anger or, at the very least,
soften it.  His lips touched my shoulder and my hands pulsed on his back.  I
leaned away from him and he released me but kept a hand on the base of my neck
so we were still touching.

"By
the way, why was I not let in on the fact that you all bugged me?" I
asked, hinting at my annoyance about that.

"I
figured that he'd know we were tapping into your conversation and that he would
ask you to remove your ear bud, so I had Ethan put it on you without you
knowing.  That way you wouldn't give any subconscious tells that you were still
wired," Brooks said.

I
looked at Ethan.  "So earlier, when you . . . that was just to plant a
bug?" I asked quietly.

He
shook his head.  "I was going to do that anyway."

I
glanced at the others and figured that conversation could wait until later, so
I settled for saying, "Don't do that again."

"Ethan
didn't want to, but I convinced him it would help you in the end," Brooks
said.  "And it did."

"It's
not like you were going to take advantage of your radio silence and take him up
on his offer.  Right?" Spencer reasoned.

"I'd
just like to know from now on," I said.  "We don't con each other. 
And there are certain things I think but don't say when I'm around you
guys."

"Like
the line about sucking his dick?  That was kickass," Spencer said.

Surprisingly,
August nodded her head in agreement.  "It was.  Hey, what happened right
before you all almost shot each other?  There was a noise and then Alex said
ominously, '
A warning.'
  What did you do?"

Ethan
full on smiled.  "Fletcher tried to kiss her and she stabbed the table
with her knife within centimeters of his hand," he said.  "Without
looking," he added proudly.

"I
also threatened his manhood with my other knife, though looking back, that
probably wasn't the best move," I said.

"I
don't care.  You're my hero," Spencer said.

I
sighed with playful exasperation and dropped onto the couch.

"We
have a week.  What are we supposed to do until then?" August asked.

"I
say we attack him back," Spencer said.  "I'm tired of always
defending ourselves.  Let's make them retreat."

"I
would like to have the upper hand for once," I said.

"I'm
tracking Fletcher now with that bug you planted on him," Ollie said. 
"Of course, he could have done the exact same thing you did and put it on
someone else to distract us."

"But
if not, then we know where he's staying," August said excitedly.

Ollie
flipped the screen around and it was a map with a blinking dot hovering over a
hotel. 

"Someone
please tell me he isn't staying in a hotel across the street from the
restaurant we just met at," I said.

"Apparently,"
Brooks said.  "He's too arrogant, thinks he's untouchable."

"So
what's the plan?" I asked.  "I doubt sending a bunch of porn
magazines to his mother will do the trick."

"I
don't know, but I'm hungry," Spencer said.

I
checked my watch.  It was almost ten o'clock. 

"Yeah,
me too," Ethan agreed.  "I'll go pick up some food and bring it
back," he suggested.

"I'll
ride with you," Ollie said.

Ethan
gave me a lingering kiss goodbye, in front of everyone, I might add, but I shut
them out and tried to keep it PG.  I lay down on the couch after they left,
exhausted from the day's events.  I watched television and tried to keep my
eyes open because I was hungry as well, but fell asleep between commercial
breaks.  I woke up when I was gently jostled around.  Arms slid under my back
and legs and I was lifted up and pulled against a hard chest.  My eyes cracked
open and I saw Ethan's profile.

I
looped my arm around his neck.  "What are you doing?" I asked, sleep
laced heavily into my voice.

"Taking
you to bed."

"But
. . . food," I said.  Everything became much simpler when I was sleepy.

"We
ate without you," he said.

He
pushed open our bedroom door and lowered me down on the bed.  He sat by my hip
and leaned down to take off my shoes and socks.  The second that his hands
brushed at the zipper on my jeans, I snapped wide awake.  He unzipped and
unbuttoned them, then stood up to pull them down my legs.  It was a bit
presumptuous of him, but I liked that.  I was gearing up for something to
happen between us, but he didn't even look at my face before he tugged the
covers over my body and sat back down.  He dropped down onto two hands by my
shoulders and lowered his face close to mine, right where I wanted him.

"Go
back to sleep, baby.  I'll come to bed in a few minutes," he said
quietly.  He kissed me softly and then left the room. 

"Well,
okay then, " I muttered to myself. 

I
yawned, took off my bra and flipped over onto my side.  I don't know if it
really was a few minutes later or not, but I woke back up as I felt him gently
fit his front against my back and wrap an arm around my waist slowly, as if
trying not to wake me.  I ran my fingertips down his arm that was around me and
he pulled me more securely against him and tucked his hand under me to curl his
fingers around my ribs, his forearm barely touching my breasts. 

I
was still half-asleep and it was on the tip of my tongue to casually remind him
that I loved him before falling back asleep, but at the last second, I
remembered that I hadn't told him yet.  And then I realized just how long it'd
been since I told
anyone
casually that I loved them.  That was
simultaneously saddening and satisfying, because at long last, after years of
searching for something and not knowing what it was, I knew all the way down to
my soul that I finally found it in the man wrapped around me. 

I
lifted my hand behind me and softly caressed his face, running it from the back
of his head, through his hair and down his cheek affectionately.  He hummed his
voice at me contently and fit his knees against mine.  I lived my entire life
sleeping alone, but I could get definitely get used to this snuggling thing. 
It was awesome.

"Night,
baby," he murmured into my hair.

Yeah,
I could definitely get used to this.

"Night,
Ethan," I whispered.

I
threaded our fingers together and fell asleep holding his hand.

I
was dreaming that Ethan and I were back on the bike, riding just because we
could, when I felt something tickling my arm.  I slapped at it and it went
away.  I heard light rainfall and was just about to drift back to sleep to the
sound of it when something else tickled my belly button.  I smacked at it and
felt a hand.  A hand that wasn't mine.  My eyes snapped open and I saw Ethan's
smiling face hovering over mine.  He was leaning on his elbow by my head and
his free hand went back to tickling my belly button lightly.

I
grinned and rubbed the sleep from my eyes.  "You know, normal couples
don't spend their very first few nights and mornings together," I said in
a raspy voice.

"Sure
they do.  Well, some of them do, I would think," he said.

"The
liberal ones," I smiled.

"I'm
sure there are a few Republicans, too."

I
laughed.  "Mmhmm."  I slid my palm through his lengthening stubble. 
It wasn't too thick or thin and it was only a few millimeters long. 
"You're letting your beard grow out."

He
put his hand on top of mine.  "I should shave."

"No,
I like it," I said.  He dropped his hand and I feathered my fingers
through the black strands.  "It's softer now.  Plus, it raises your sex
appeal exponentially."

He
chuckled.  "Exponentially?"

"Yeah,"
I breathed out with a dreamy expression. 

He
laughed and brushed his face along my cheek and down my neck.  "You still
like it?" he asked.

I
chuckled and said, "Yes.  Just don't let it grow wild."

I
pulled his face back to mine and kissed his lips but the second I tried to
deepen it, he pulled back and shook his head.

"There
is no way I'm starting anything with you that we won't get to finish," he
said seriously.  I frowned at him and he slid his hand up my shirt and
flattened it against my skin between my ribs and below my breasts, which didn't
exactly contradict his words, but didn't agree, either.  "You know as well
as I do that someone is going to knock on that door right when one of us gets
to the good part," he said. 

I
knew he was right but I was giddy from the best wake up I'd ever received, so I
smiled sweetly at him and raised my shirt up my torso very slowly.  His eyes
dipped down to watch the progress of the hemline but he said, "Stop. 
You're killing me."  I tried not to laugh and slid it up even higher, so I
exposed his hand between my ribs.  His eyes flicked back to mine and he
clenched his jaw.  "Babe," he cautioned.

My
pulse quickened and my smile dropped as I slid my shirt higher to show the
bottom swells of my breasts.  He could definitely already see my nipples
through my shirt, because the moment I saw him hovering over me shirtless, I
was turned on.  His breathing increased enough for me to notice and he lowered
himself onto his forearm to hover his face closer to mine as my hands lightly
coasted up and down his sides.  His hand moved so his index finger disappeared
under my shirt and between the valley of my breasts.  My lips parted and his
thumb swiped the underside of one swell right as someone knocked on the door.

"You're
kidding me!" I yelled.

"Uh.
. . sorry," Ollie called through the door uncertainly.

"Told
you," Ethan whispered. 

He
swiped his thumb over my nipple and smiled when I gasped, satisfied with my
extremely positive reaction to him.  He kissed me quickly and yanked my shirt
back down to the top of my underwear.  He jumped up from the bed and pulled the
covers over me again, tucking them right under my chin.

"Ha,
ha," I said sarcastically.

He
smirked at me and opened the door to Oliver.  "What's up?" Ethan
asked conversationally, like he wasn't about to get some action.

Or
give some.

"Breakfast
is ready," Ollie said.

Ethan
glanced back at me and said, "Yeah, we're hungry."

His
eyes twinkled at me and mine flashed wider.  But then I looked at Ollie and
shook my head to clear it. 

I
sat up and kept the covers wrapped around me under my arms.  "What did you
cook?" I asked.

He
seemed relieved to see that I wasn't naked and said, "Brooks made eggs and
toast."

"Thank
you so much for letting us know," Ethan said a touch too graciously to be
sincere.

Oliver
flicked his eyes between us and said quickly, "Sorry, Spencer made me do
it."  He turned on his heel and ran away. 

"I
get first dibs to punch Spencer in the kidney," I said gravely.

"Alex,"
Ethan reprimanded me facetiously.  He shut the door and prowled over to the
bed.  He sat down on the edge closest to me and looked at me seriously. 
"I obviously get first dibs from the sheer number of times that I was left
literally frustrated."

I
laughed but felt immensely guilty at the same time.  "Ethan," I
laughed.  "I'm really sorry."

"Turns
out there's a cure for that."

"Yes,
it's called your hand," I said cheekily.

"Or
yours," he said darkly.

My
pulse spiked and
I
clenched
my
teeth.  I glanced down at his
crotch without meaning to and quickly back to his face.  I was torn between
saying yes and running from the room from nerves.  I opened my mouth to respond
but he kissed me lightly instead of letting me speak.

"It's
okay.  I'm just screwing with you," he said lightly.  I raised my eyebrows
at his choice of words.  "Let's go eat," he said. 

"When
this is over, we're going on vacation far, far away from anyone we know,"
I said.

"
Everyone
we know," he amended, floating his face close to mine.

He
stood up and put a shirt on.  The fact that he wasn't pressuring me made me
reconsider because I
did
want to give him a helping hand, so to speak, I
was just nervous.  But I glanced at the door and knew that he was right, we
were bound to be interrupted.

I
scooted to the edge of the bed and rifled through our clothes until I found
fresh ones for me.  I pulled on my sweat pants and left to take a shower.  I
redressed in August's cotton shorts and as soon as I was done getting ready for
the day, I stood in the doorway and looked out at the rest of them on the deck. 

Ollie
was rubbing the sleep from his eyes, not quite awake yet.  Spencer and August
were picking an assortment of locks and Ethan was timing them.  Brooks was
sitting in a deck chair and staring out at the ocean.  I poured two cups of
coffee and walked out to the deck.  I handed Brooks a cup and sat in the empty
chair next to him.

"Morning,"
he said.

"That,
it is," I spoke into my coffee.

He
looked at his coffee.  "You know how I take my coffee?" he asked.

"Brooks,
that's how we met, remember?" I smiled.  "You ordered a coffee at the
bookshop."

He
tilted his head to the side.  "Right."

I
stared out at the ocean.  "I know what you tried to do yesterday," I
said.

He
glanced at me.  "What are you talking about?"

"I
think you were genuinely worried that I might not want to stay, so when you
told me I had a choice and that you didn't expect me to stay, you pulled a
Worried Dad With Rebellious Teenage Daughter trick and tried to make me want to
do the opposite of what you said."

I
looked over at him.  "No," he said.  "I really was reminding you
that you have choices.  Would your mind have changed either way?" he
asked.

"No."

We
blinked at each other and then turned back to the ocean at the same time.

"So
what are we going to do about Fletcher?"

"We
wait," Brooks said.  "Trust me, wrath and revenge are far more
formidable from that of a patient person.  But even so, I don't want to rush
into anything and prompt a senseless war between us.  What was that quote by
Confucius?"

"Confucius
said, 'Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves,'" August
said.

Brooks
snapped his fingers and pointed at her.  "Yes, that's it.  Anyway, I'm
hoping he'll put on his big girl panties and leave us the hell alone."

"How
did you go from sounding like a scholar to a teenager in a few sentences?"
I asked, genuinely perplexed.

"I'm
a complicated man, Alex," he said.

I
chuckled and finished off my coffee.  "I've noticed."

Ethan
walked over and stole the seat directly across from me and slid it closer to
prop his feet on the edge of my chair.  "So what are we going to do about
a house once this is over?" he asked.

"We
can stay here for as long as we need to," Brooks said.  "I'm not even
consulting a contractor until this is over, because Fletcher will just find and
burn that place down out of spite."

"He's
such an asshole," I muttered.

"What
are we doing tonight, if we're just waiting him out?" Ethan asked.  Super
Ears heard probably our entire conversation from the other end of the deck.

"We
have to eat, right?" Brooks asked.  "Let's go out to eat."

I
smirked.  "Like a family?"

"Like
a family of fugitives," Ollie corrected as he joined us.

"Even
better," I said.

*****

Ethan,
Ollie and I rode in our car and Brooks took Spencer and August in theirs to the
restaurant.  We were at the beach at the beginning of the tourist season, so
all of the restaurants and bars were crowded more than usual.  Brooks chose a
steakhouse that had food, beer and music. 

We
grabbed a table that was near the dance floor and ordered food, having to raise
our voices above the sound of music to be heard.  I constantly scanned our
surroundings, looking for one face in particular.  I didn't see him anywhere
but Ethan was right, it
was
always something and I wanted to be
prepared. 

Ethan
noticed my unease and placed a heavy, comforting palm on my thigh under the
table.  I glanced over at him and smiled.  He resumed listening to Oliver talk
about a new gadget he made and I kept a close eye on the people around us.  I
wasn't normally quite so paranoid, especially with all of us together, but I
kept reliving moments from my talk with Fletcher the evening before so I was
extra aware of his threatening presence.

Soon
the looming threat of Fletcher faded, only to be replaced by the women in the
restaurant.  I noticed more than a few overtly checking Ethan out, which was
fine and normal, but it also flipped my brain into overdrive like a light
switch. 

Ethan
confessed to being mine, but I couldn't help wondering how long that would
last.  I hated to even consider it, but my last boyfriend disappeared, more or
less, after he got what he wanted.  And I knew Ethan wasn't a selfish or weak
bastard like that guy was, but it was hard to ignore that possibility when it
already came true once in my life.  It hurt when the other guy did it, but it
would absolutely destroy me if Ethan did.

Our
waiter delivered our food and Ethan leaned over to whisper in my ear. 
"You're quiet.  What's up?"

I
smiled weakly and shook my head.  "Nothing."

I
delved into my food and ignored his questioning stare.  He gave up and started
in on his own meal and kept up with the conversation at the table. 
Unfortunately for me, once the ball was rolling with the negative ex-boyfriend
memories, it only got worse.  Looking around at all of the women in the
restaurant and at the bar, the realization hit me like a ton of bricks that I'd
been living with Ethan this entire time in our own private realm, but the real
world wasn't that small.  It was easy to ignore everyone else when we were
locked alone together, but the reality was that the world was large and filled
with endless options.  He was sexy as hell and could literally have any woman
he wanted.  Sure, I had him right now but what if I wasn't enough to
keep
him? 

Okay
fine, so I was feeling a little insecure.  Everyone had times of insecurity. 
The bitch of it, though, was that he gave me absolutely no reason to be, so I
was being extra irrational. 

He
touched my back and I actually jumped.  I glanced at him quickly and he looked
worried but I brushed it off. 

"I'm
fine.  Just paranoid, I guess," I said.

He
narrowed his eyes suspiciously and I wondered for the billionth time why I had
to fall for someone so sharp and perceptive.  But then that opened the whole
can of worms about being in love with him and feeling the fear of both losing
that feeling, and him not returning it.  That was really the core problem.  I
wanted to tell him but didn't want to say it too fast and scare him away or be
flat out rejected. 

What
a strange problem for me to have. 
Me
, who used to be so independent
that I wouldn't even let my aunt contribute to my college or apartment funds
because I wanted to make it on my own.  Jeez, how things had changed.  Like how
I was in love for the first time in my life but too afraid to enjoy it.