From The Wreckage - Complete (18 page)

"I...um, thanks." She blinks back tears. "Do you need some help? Cleaning up, I mean?"

"You don't want to help with this - ." 

Her mind made up, she steps off her bike. "Sure I do." Carter eyes her skeptically and she explains. "This is
my
town. I want to do something to help."

"Even if we're rivals?"

She laughs at that and props her bike on its kickstand. "Not anymore. Starting Monday, I'm a Rossview Knight, too."

"Really?"

"Yeah, really," she deadpans. She follows him into the now-empty store and surveys the space. All the merchandise and shelving has been removed, and there are some cans of paint lying in the corner. 

"So, cheerleader," he drawls, and Jules is immediately reminded of West. "Can you paint?"

"Who do you think makes all those amazing spirit banners around the field and school on game days? We're smarter than you think, water boy."

He gives a low whistle out of his mouth and shakes his head. "Low blow, princess." Jules bursts out laughing and Carter joins in. 

Jules and Carter work for two hours lugging the last of the construction debris and broken glass to the dumpster before they finally pop open the cans of vibrant green paint. 

Most of the time they work in silence; his speed metal playlist filling the air between them. She can’t help but study him whenever he isn’t looking her way…his tan skin, dark, almost black hair and light eyes. His body is in prime shape. Texas sure knows how to grow ‘em.

Once they are ready to paint, Carter throws a water bottle at her and finally turns his music down a notch.

"So the good thing is, we don't have to worry about splattering paint on the floor here." He points at the concrete floor below their feet and explains how the carpet installers will be there in the next few days to finish it off. "You can quit now if you'd want." 

"No way. This is the part I've been waiting for," she teases as she takes a roller from his hand and covers it in paint.

"You're not going to start cheering, are you?" 

"No, wise guy." 

Jules lifts the roller and begins to cover the wall in the new cheerful green. It is funny how at ease she feels helping Carter out. They barely say a word once they start painting, and yet she doesn’t mind. It is nice having something to do and not needing to fill it with idle chat. 

"Where's your mom? Why are you here all by yourself today, anyway?" Jules asks as she dips the roller in more paint.

"She'll be here soon. She was meeting with her insurance company again. So much red tape with all of this crap."

"How so?"

"Hell, I don't know. That’s just what she says," he replies with a shrug.

"Sorry it took so long, sweetie," a woman's voice calls out from the entrance. "I grabbed you lunch, though." 

"Speak of the devil." Carter whistles and sets his roller to the side. Jules turns, her paint roller in mid-roll, to see Gail Cooper walking in carrying a deli bag in one hand and a handful of painting supplies in the other. Mrs. Cooper always seemed very refined when she saw her around town. She is several inches taller than Jules, with board-straight black hair that is always pulled up in a simple chignon.

"Oh!" She stops and eyes Jules almost warily. "I didn't know you'd enlisted help."

"Mom, this is Jules-"

"Blacklin. I know, honey," she interrupts with a smile. She places the supplies on the floor and the food on a table sitting in the corner. "This color looks fabulous. You're more than halfway done."

"Thanks to my assistant here," Carter acknowledges, and Jules feels her face flush.

"I told him cheerleaders were masters at painting, but he didn't believe me," she teases lightly. 

"Yes, well thank you for helping. Why don't the two of you take a break, and I'll earn my keep for a while? I bought Carter more than enough for two, so he can share."

Jules is about to protest when he reaches around her and plucks the roller from her hands. "Come on. The warden says break, we break." 

He throws her two bottled waters, grabs the deli bag and motions for her to follow him out the store front. The sound of buzz saws and hammering fills the town center as clean-up and restoration is underway. They cross the street and Carter lowers himself to sit on the curb next to where his car was parked. 

Kenilsworth is a side street that branches off of Main Street, where most of the construction is taking place. Gail's is only two buildings down from Main, so when they cross over to eat, Jules is pleased to see they are at the corner of Main and Kenilsworth where she can watch all the action. Currently Main Street is closed from three blocks north of Kenilsworth and one block south, and the street is filled with dumpsters, power trucks and tree removal crews. Although the street is a mess, Jules’ heavy heart lifts as she looks around at all of the volunteers lending a hand.

"You know, my mom was lucky. Her building is actually standing. Have you gone up Main? Once you get past Queens Street, the stores are just gone." Carter unwraps a sub sandwich of some sort and hands Jules one half. "Here."

She squints up the street and wishes she could see past the large dump trucks as she reaches over and takes the sandwich. "You don't have to feed me, you know." 

"You didn't have to help me." 

"I know." 

"So why did you?"

Jules stretches her legs out into the street in front of her, scratching at the specks of green paint splattered across her shins. She looks at Carter Cooper from the corner of her eye and can instantly see why Tanya was interested in him. He is Abercrombie & Fitch-poster-boy fine.

"Did the paint fumes get to you?" He looks at her with a small smile.

"What? Oh, no. Sorry. I was just-"

"You were checking me out."

"No!" she cries, flustered beyond belief. "I mean, yeah, actually I was, but it’s not what you think. I'm not interested in you or anything."

He nods. "I know."

"I just...I was thinking of Tanya and how I could see why she liked you." She stops when his words finally register in her head. "What do you mean ‘you know’?"

He laughs, places his sandwich in his lap and takes a long swig of his water. "I've got eyes, Jules. I saw you with Rutledge at the funeral last week."

Her mouth forms a silent 'Oh' and he waggles his brows at her. "You've got balls girl, hanging onto him with your golden boy across the way. I can't imagine Daniels took that too well."

Her cheeks flush. Stuart was right. She and West
weren’t
in their own little bubble at that moment, and people definitely took notice.

"Daniels is a prick, anyway. You should dump him and go out with West. It's obvious there's a thing between you two."

"Wow, pry much?"

"Sorry, I just call it like I see it," he offers. He stuffs the last bite of his sandwich into his mouth with a grin. She's only taken two small bites of her own. Boys!

"Of course you think Stuart's a prick! He killed Rossview on the field three years in a row. Are you speaking from jealousy or from personal experience with him?"

Carter squints his eyes and Jules can tell she struck a nerve with the football jab. He stands abruptly and balls up his trash. 

"Look, I don't really care
who
you date. I barely know you, but Tanya loved you so I was trying to be nice. Like I said — I like West, and I saw you two the other day. I should get back in there. Thanks for helping, Jules."

Jump back! How the hell did this escalate so quickly?
she wonders; her mouth dropping open as Carter starts to cross the street. She is about to apologize when a motorbike turns the corner and pulls to an abrupt stop in front of him. Jules would know that bike anywhere, and she fights the urge to crawl behind Carter's car and hide from West as he lifts the visor on his helmet.

"Hey man," she hears Carter call out when West turns the bike off.

West replies in an indistinguishable low voice and looks over his shoulder when Carter points to his mom's shop. 

She forces herself to her feet and to her chagrin, the paper sack in her hand crackles as she wads it up. West leans his body to the side; his brown eyes peering around Carter at the sound. She watches his brows lift as his head snaps towards Carter, and his fingers go to the strap across his chin to unsnap it.

West pulls his helmet from his head and slides off his bike in one fluid movement. Setting the helmet on his seat, he leaves his bike sitting in the middle of the street and comes around it. Carter takes a step back when West steps towards him; raising his arms in defense.

"Whoa, man…she was just helping me paint the shop…nothing else." 

She barely sees West with Carter's body blocking him from her view, but she can feel the tension rolling off him. When he finally speaks to Carter, relief runs through her.

"Excuse me." Two words, spoken deliberately and specifically, are all he has to say to make Carter jump to the side, and suddenly Jules is face to face with an unreadable West Rutledge. Only ten feet separate them. 

They stare each other down for only seconds before his lips twitch; the left side pulling up slightly in a small, crooked smile.

He raises his hands, whispers 'Buffy', and she notes a spark in his golden brown eyes as his long legs take three strides to close the gap between them. Jules stumbles back, bumping into Carter's car, and her heart pounds so hard she is positive he can hear it. West's determination is obvious, although his intent is questionable. His chest bumps into hers, which causes a shiver to run through her and warm her to the core, even as her skin breaks out into goose bumps. 

She opens her mouth to reply, but West swoops in and silences her with his lips. His hands move to the back of her head and his fingers slide into the hair at the base of her skull, holding her in place as his warm mouth claims hers. 

She gives in immediately to the hard kiss and allows him to invade her mouth with no protest on her part. His large body pushes into hers and presses her against Carter's car; the grill digging into her bare thighs. The whole world goes silent while he kisses her, and the feeling of his fingers rubbing the back of her neck calms her senses.
Wow…I could stay lost in him all day
, she thinks. He makes a small groaning sound in his throat and finally lifts his mouth from hers. She almost moans at the loss as he kisses her cheek twice, grazing the side of her mouth.

"I'm not screwing this up again," he whispers. He plants a swift kiss on her mouth and lowers one of his arms from her head to encircle her waist; pressing against her lower back. "I'll be damned if I let another guy step in and get a chance with you before I do." He all but growls the words as his eyes meet hers.

"I..." she starts, but he covers her mouth again. 

"Shut up and kiss me, Buffy," he orders softly into her mouth.

The lunch sack and water bottle slips from her fingers as she pulls him to her and kisses him hard; her hands fisting in the shirt at his back.

Carter coughs behind them. "Well I'll leave you two alone, I guess. Be careful of the paint job, Rutledge," Carter heckles.

Neither one of them reply as they continue to explore each other's mouths, this time a bit softer and slower. West's thumb rubs along her jaw as his teeth graze her bottom lip. He tugs it into his mouth gently and she sighs contentedly. His fingers skim the skin at her waist and cause her muscles to twitch.

"Why the hell are you hanging out with
Carter Cooper
?" he finally grumbles as he pulls away from her mouth reluctantly.

"You're going to let me speak now?" she asks; releasing her fingers from his shirt and flexing them. 

"Actually..." He grins and tilts his mouth towards hers again; his eyes full of heat.

She laughs into his mouth when his lips touch hers and punches his side lightly. "I need air," she gasps playfully. 

Her hand goes to her tingling lips and she tries to control her ragged breathing. They just stood in broad daylight making out for everyone to see! She feels the heat of a blush surge up her neck and into her cheeks, and sidesteps from West.

"What was that?" Jules asks with uncertainty, meaning the surprise kiss.

He tugs on the bottom of her shirt when she slips out of his arms, and his face openly questions her movement.

"How come you're hanging out with Carter?" he counters. 

She laughs at him with a shake of her head. "I don't think so, bud. I asked you first." 

She bends down to pick up the dropped lunch sack and tries to harness the emotions he awakened in her with his kiss as she waits for his reply.

"It was just a kiss."

"You kiss all the girls you know like that?" He smirks and her ire grows. "Nice way to accost a girl on the street, Rutledge," she scoffs, and brusquely knocks into his side as she tries to pass him.

He pulls her in by the waist when she tries to pass him, and she stiffens at the contact when her back presses against his chest. West leans over her and moves his lips to her ear, and her nostrils fill with his overly male scent. An interesting mixture of gasoline and spearmint teases her nose and makes her stomach flip.

His lips graze her ear as lightly as a butterfly kiss when he speaks into it. "You didn't seem to want to complain, Buffy."

Her knees go weak with his hot breath against her sensitive skin, and another shiver runs along her spine when his hand drops from her waist. Shaking off the chills, she turns on him with a snarky comment ready on her lips. However, as soon as her eyes take in his knowing grin, the words are silenced. She can’t whip up enough strength to tell him he is mistaken, because of course, he isn’t.

After a face-off, he repeats his earlier question. "You and Carter?" 

"I was riding by and saw him. Asked if I could help."

"You're friends?"

"No." She is quick to point it out, although she feels as if they
are
actually friends now. Maybe. West's face scrunches up in bewilderment, and feeling as if more of an explanation is due, she continues. "Um, he went out with Tanya this summer. I guess, I don't know...when I saw him I just felt like I needed to stop and speak to him."