Gas or Ass (11 page)

He scowled. “Caroline is Colt’s half sister. Same mama. This is gon’ tear him up.”

Colt looked over his shoulder. The pain in his eyes struck me like a blow from a fist. “Goddamn, I gotta do somethin’, Caine.” His gaze raked me. He cut his eyes back to his brother. I tried to squirm away from Caine’s prodding finger, with no luck. Fear pounded through my veins, but the insistent prodding from Caine wouldn’t let me think.

A steady
beep, beep, beep,
distracted me from Colt’s scrutiny. The rear of a tow truck came into view. The driver backed up to the Challenger’s rear end.

I looked toward Caroline. Her hand worked at the front of the sheriff’s khaki pants. Was she jerking him off?

“Gas or ass, Caroline,” the fat man barked. He turned his head in our direction. “I’m gonna let Wade hook this car up if you can’t offer me somethin’ I ain’t had before.”

Colt spun and leaned close. “Shelby, listen. I want you. I wanna be with you, but Caine ain’t gonna bust your cherry and I’m too damn big. Mack Brown’s dick ain’t this big around.” He held up the same thumb he’d put inside me this morning. “I’ll love you forever if you’ll do this for me, baby. Just let the old man bust that cherry. He’ll let us race for a year before he comes back for another taste.” He smoothed a hand over my hair. “I know you’ll be long gone by then. I’ll figure out how to deal with that later, but I’ll be right here the whole time, staring into those pretty green eyes. It’ll be over before you know it.”

No! No!
Instead, I opened my mouth and the words that came out were, “But, it’s my first time. I wanted it to be with you.”

Caine pressed my clit harder. My body reacted, despite the logical voice saying to get the hell out of here.
I’ll love you forever,
was the phrase my heart seized on.

“Shelby, you’ve seen his cock. You gotta work up to that, baby sister. That’s the big leagues. Besides, the first time always sucks for girls. Mack won’t hurt you much.” He winked. “And I guarantee you’ll never get a speedin’ ticket in this county.”

Horror froze me in place. He couldn’t be serious.

“Say yes, baby doll. Please, do this for me.” Colt’s eyes held a plea. He tangled his fingers in my hair and tugged. “Say no and that car’s gone forever. I swear to God, I’ll take you home and put you in the shower and hold you all night long.” He kissed my cheek. “We’ll just kiss and cuddle until the sun comes up. I promise I’ll make you forget this ever happened.”

Mesmerized by his pleading expression, it felt like I’d stepped out of my own skin. But I knew, deep down in my gut, that if I said no, he’d spin this tale to my mother in the worst light.

I pictured her horrified face in my mind. Her sobs rang inside my head. If I made trouble with Caine and Colt, it would blow back on her and Dale’s relationship. I had no choice, really.

That wasn’t why I said, “Okay.” I was still hearing him saying, “I’ll love you forever.”

The look in Colt’s eyes when I agreed made me sick to my stomach and happy, all at once.

“Hey, Mack, how about this one?” Caine yelled. “I been rubbin’ her cherry all night.”

Boots scuffed the asphalt, coming closer. The top of the sheriff’s stiff-brimmed hat barely cleared Colt’s shoulder. Deep-set eyes glittered inside a round, pale face.

Colt leaned forward, blocking my view of the policeman. “Good girl,” he crooned. “So fuckin’ beautiful.” He pressed his lips to mine. I felt a pinch to my nipple. Caine moved from between my thighs. Cold air rushed in, but wide hips soon blocked the chill.

I felt everything and nothing. Hands fumbled between my thighs. A belt buckle jingled.

Caine moved to the other side of the car. His mouth felt warm on my nipple, but his hard tugs had no effect. One sweaty palm gripped my hips. A fist brushed my folds, something pushed me open, burrowing a short distance inside me. “Damn tight hole. You ain’t lyin’ about that cherry, neither. Goddamn, Colt, this is primo shit.”

“Pretty baby,” Colt crooned. “Such a good girl.” I held his gaze, gasping with pain when the fat man grabbed my hips and lunged forward. Colt smothered the sound with his lips. I focused on the thrust of his tongue, desperate to hold another, similar sensation at bay.

Past Colt’s light hair, I tracked a tiny red light streaking across the sky. A plane? I wished to be on it, going anywhere. At the same time, my mind leaped ahead to Colt’s promise.
We’ll just kiss and cuddle until the sun comes up. I promise I’ll make you forget this ever happened.

“Fuck!” The motion between my thighs ceased. The thing inside me jerked. I tried to figure out what the hot, wet sensation might be.

“Carl! Unhook that Dodge.” The scuffing sound moved away and I gasped for breath.

Colt pushed my shirt down. “Be right back, babe.”

I had to get off this car. I struggled onto my elbows. Caine slid a hand under my back and helped me sit. I gripped the hand he offered and prepared for the jump to the ground. A gush of fluid stopped me. In one horrified heartbeat, I identified the sensation. “He didn’t use a condom?” I forced the words through my sobs.

Caine’s brow furrowed, then his eyes went wide. “You ain’t on the Pill?”

I drew back and swung. Sharp pain sizzled up my arm when I connected with his cheek. My palm went numb all the way to my wrist. “Why would I be on the Pill?”

I thought for a minute he’d hit me back, but the flare of anger in his eyes died as fast as it lit. “Hang on, Shelby. Don’t move.” He jerked away, running to open the car door, then he ducked inside.

I didn’t want to look for Colt. I shouldn’t have to. He should be right by my side. He’d asked me for something huge, something that should’ve earned me his loyalty. And now that I’d given it, he just walked away? To see about a goddamn car? A piece of metal with no feelings?

No, to check on Caroline.

Don’t look at him. Don’t look at him.

My head swiveled anyway, like something besides me controlled it. He stood a few feet away, talking to the cop. While I fought to stifle my tears, he slapped the sheriff on the back and stuffed his fist into his front pocket. The plain blue sedan sagged when the cop wedged his body behind the wheel.

Caine tapped me on the shoulder. I dragged my gaze back to him. “Lay down, girl.” He lifted a brown bottle. I identified the Budweiser label by the corners that peeked from underneath his palm. He pushed my shoulder. “This’ll drown them little swimmers.”

This isn’t happening. This isn’t me. This is just a bad dream.

Tears stung my eyes. I tried to blink them back, fearing I’d never stop crying if I started, but one spilled over.

His expression softened. He smoothed his thumb over the hot trail. When he drew back, my tear glistened on his fingertip. Holding my gaze, he lifted his thumb to his lips and licked the droplet.

“If you need to hit me again, Shelby, go ahead. As many times as you need. But we gotta to get this done first.” Breaking my gaze, he pulled his keys out of his front pocket and used something on his keychain to pry the bottle cap off. “You’re gonna get a buzz,” he warned, lifting my skirt. “But hold this in as long as you can. Lie back.”

I gritted my teeth and lowered my torso to the car again. The smooth glass stuck to soft tissues that were no longer wet. Cold fluid ran down my thighs and under my buttocks, but some went inside me. I breathed deep and pressed my lips together so I didn’t scream as Caine sloshed the beer into me. I felt a pinch when he tipped the bottom of the bottle high.

“Give me some.” My thirst overrode my horror. I grabbed the bottle and drained the beer, chocking it al down before Caine pried it from my hand. A crash in the brush behind the car made me stiffen, until I realized he’d tossed the bottle.

Not knowing if this was a good idea or another bad one, I tried to squeeze my muscles and hold the liquid inside. 

“Hey,” Caine whispered, drawing my eyes back to his. Numbness spread through my abdomen. My head felt heavy and hard to control. He reached behind his head and jerked his shirt off. Wadding the garment, he stuffed it between my legs. Leaning over me, he slid his fingers through mine and squeezed my hands so tight I winced, but the contact helped me hold together when I felt like I might fly apart. His dark eyes bored into mine. I was so cold now, but his big body felt like a blanket. He nuzzled my chin, working his way to my mouth.

The uncomfortable sensation in my channel faded as my body warmed the beer. My nipples started to tingle and they drew into tight beads. What the hell was wrong with me? Had I no control over my own body when these two were around?

His lips came down on mine, scattering my ability to think. He kissed me, hard and fierce. How could I be aroused? I kissed him back, because thinking about how his taste and technique differed from Colt’s kept worse thoughts at bay.

“My turn.” The feminine voice caused Caine to break away. “Damn, girl, that was somethin’ else. I don’t even know what to say.” Caroline’s light hair fell forward, and her face came closer and closer until I couldn’t hold her eyes in focus. Warm lips, much softer than Caine’s, touched mine. She kissed more gently than either of my stepbrothers. It felt quite nice, so I kissed her back. Masculine hoots—
approval?—
seemed to come from far away.

Then, somehow, I was kissing Brandon. His kiss was just as intimate as the rest, but I didn’t care for the feeling of his tongue in my mouth. At last, I heard Colt’s rough command. “Enough, McKinna.” Something metallic flashed at the edge of my vision. “Take my car to the house, Brandon. Caroline can bring you back for your truck. Caine, let’s roll.”

Colt scooped me into his arms and all I could see were his eyes. “I got you, baby. Goddamn, what’d I do to deserve you?” He pressed a hand to the back of my head, pushing with gentle pressure. My heart thumped when I snuggled against his chest and put my head on his shoulder. He pressed his lips to my temple. “Let’s go home, baby girl.”

Would it feel like home now?

I dozed off after the truck pulled out of the cul-de-sac and sped down the dark two-lane road. When I woke, I blinked at the bright lights of a Walmart. Colt’s arms tightened around me, so I laid my head down and drifted back to sleep.

The dome light and a buzzing noise roused me. “We’re home, Shelby.” My legs didn’t seem like they’d hold me, but Colt was there to steady me. They led me past the old cars parked in the carport at the back of the house. Caine eased a sliding glass door open. He handed Colt a small paper bag. Hooking a finger under my chin, he tipped my face to his. His kiss was no more than a touch to my lips. “Goodnight, little sister.”

Colt led me forward. I blinked at the grease-stained concrete floor and unpainted block walls. To my right, double doors sat in the middle of a paneled wall that partitioned the full basement, but Colt led me down a short hallway between that room and the staircase.

I peered into a darkened room, spying a washer and dryer, but the next door down was his destination. He flipped a switch. I blinked at the sudden flare of bright lights. When the spots cleared from my vision, I gazed numbly at the bare bones bathroom. Colt unrolled the paper bag.

“We’re gonna get you cleaned up in the shower, okay? Then, you need to use this. Don’t want you gettin’ a yeast infection from that goddamn beer.” I blinked at the generic box, reading the words over and over.
Vaginal antifungal?

Had he done this before? Why did he seem to know more about my body than I did? I couldn’t think straight enough to decide whether using the over-the-counter treatment for yeast infections made any sense. Caine had warned me the beer would give me a buzz, but I felt more out of control than the small amount of alcohol that’d made it inside me seemed to explain.

The horror of what I’d done—everything I’d done—hovered in the back of my mind. To keep those thoughts at bay, I focused on Colt, watching while he started the water running and then stripped off his clothes. I couldn’t let myself think too hard, or too straight. I couldn’t stop shivering and my fingers kept slipping when I tried to undress.

He pushed my skirt down, then tugged my shirt off. Where were my panties?

Taking my hand, he led me into the shower stall. The stream wasn’t as wide or as forceful as the shower in the upstairs bath, thanks to a hand-held sprayer that snaked up the stall on a metal hose, but steam filled the pre-fabricated unit. His hands felt strong and firm when he soaped them and slid them over me, never once breaking my gaze. I winced when he soaped my folds thoroughly, but at the same time, the confidant, intimate touch comforted me.

“Turn around,” he urged. I didn’t want to lose sight of him, but he pulled me against his chest, pinning me to him with one arm. “Put your foot on the wall.”

I lifted my leg and clung to the fiberglass with my toes. He lifted the sprayer off the hook and aimed it between my thighs. I arched when the stream touched my clit. He bent his head, murmuring in my ear. “You’re mine, Shelby. Just let go, baby. Don’t think about anything but how good I make you feel. That’s all we’ll ever have, but we got that.”

I tried to twist away from the insistent stream, but he clamped me more tightly with his forearm and moved his fingers to my nipple. Strumming the wet point, he flayed me with words as well as water. “You’re going to come, Shelby. You’ll come because I want you to come. This is us, baby. This is what we are. I control that streak of heat inside your pussy. It’s mine. You saved it just for me, didn’t you? Give it up, it ain’t yours no more.”

He had to be right. In my dazed state, it seemed everything started and ended with Colt. He manipulated the water flow from side to side, up and down, keeping the jet trained on my nub. I tried to hold the orgasm off because I sensed that giving him this much control was dangerous. With the force of a rip tide, in a single day, he’d swept me through milestone events and emotions that should’ve taken months to reach.

My climax hit me hard and fast, wrenching my insides. I cried out and shuddered against him, and my last dazed thought was a memory of the lifeguard who’d dragged me out of the ocean explaining to Mom that fighting a rip tide was the worst way to save yourself from one. I just couldn’t recall what he said to do to survive.