And in that moment, something broke inside Stone's chest.
A gooey mess of junk poured out, making his damn eyes sting and a tightness squeeze his heart. Damned if that wasn't a sight to see. The two survivors, together, happy, and safe. A rush of emotion fought for dominance. He engaged in the fight of his life to keep it together.
"Cool. Guess they hooked up."
Arilyn jumped into his arms and hugged him tight. "I knew you could do it," she whispered. The warning in his head bolted to the danger zone, but she felt so good in his arms, so warm and solid and real, he ignored the flashing red lights for a while.
"No, you did it."
Patrick gave a booming laugh. "You both did it. Now sit your butts down and let's test out this Thug Kitchen recipe. They're a bit badass, so this may work."
Grinning like idiots, they sat at the table and ate.
And things were good.
Hours later, temporarily sated, holding her naked body close, Stone surrendered to his need for more. Once again, in the dark, in the quiet, it was safe. Morning would arrive soon enough, and he'd bury himself in work, gain a bit of distance. "Tell me about your mom."
She snuggled against him, as comfortably as Pinky did with Robert, and spoke. "Mom was amazing. Full of spit and vinegar, as Poppy would say. She did everything bigger than life--whether it be partying, eating, drinking, smoking, having fun. She liked the extremes. She wanted a bunch more children, but then they diagnosed her with the cancer, and she battled it for a year." Arilyn dragged in a breath. Stone stroked her hair, waiting. "In the end, I watched her die a little bit more every day. The cancer ate her alive until there was nothing left of the mother I knew. Dad couldn't handle it. He'd always been in her shadow and adored her more than the average husband. He kind of doted on her. After she passed, he lost something--the drive to go on. I thought I'd be enough, but I wasn't. Poppy was the one who found him. Swallowed pills. Left me a good-bye note."
Stone squeezed her tighter, the horror of losing both parents so quickly washing over him. "I'm sorry, little one. I can't even imagine how you got through it."
"I didn't for a while. Poppy thought he'd lose me, too. I guess I could've decided to go off the deep end or turn my life around. I chose the latter. A friend got me to go to a stress management workshop that incorporated yoga techniques. At the end, some of the poison I'd kept inside began to release. That's when I knew I had to commit to a different path. I thought if I worked on myself really hard, I'd find a way not to just survive but to live. The deeper I got, the more I loved it. Yoga and meditation and the karmic path felt right for me. Like I finally found a place of peace." She gave a half laugh empty of humor. "Sorry for the drama. I know you didn't have a picnic for a past either."
"Stop. Don't apologize for something real, something that made you fight. You know how many people I see day after day that just disintegrate--either with drugs or some other vice to kill the pain? You took the hard way. You're stronger than most men I know."
She relaxed a bit in his hold. "Poppy helped. That's why I want to be here for him. I told him I'd find another place and he could live with me, but he insisted he wants to stay at the center."
"He seems to be settling better. I think as long as he can go to Ray's for pool and see you regularly, he'll be okay."
"Me, too. I can't believe he's a bit sweet on Mrs. Blackfire. You know he mentioned Thanksgiving to her? Wants the three of us to be together. Who would've thought I'd be serving tofu turkey to the Wicked Witch of Verily?"
He chuckled. "Miracles happen. Since dating you, I haven't eaten a Big Mac."
"Thank God." She ruffled his hair and grinned. "What do you usually do for the holiday?"
He shrugged. "Work. Give the other guys with families a chance to be home."
"Well, it's an open invite to come here. Even after your shift, I'll keep your tofu hot."
The sudden realization they were now talking holidays after a cozy meal with her grandfather and neighbor hit him hard. Panic stirred. What was he doing? Things were moving way too fast; he needed to slow everything down. For God's sake, he now had a dog, had promised to fix Mrs. Blackfire's driveway, and had become well-known at the senior center. What was happening to him?
He grimaced. "Tofu will never touch my mouth. You'll need to up your game."
Her green eyes sparkled with mischief. "Consider it upped." With one graceful movement, she rolled over to straddle him. Strawberry hair tumbling down her shoulders, hard peach nipples peeking through the strands, she arched, cupping her breasts, and he was hard again and ready to go. "How's this?"
He had no spit but managed to mutter, "If I'm stuck with tofu, you better give me more."
She dropped her voice to a husky, naughty growl. "Oh, I intend to."
Lowering her head, she dropped kisses over his chest, moving down his body, until she cupped his throbbing erection in her soft hands and began to work him. Stone gritted his teeth and hung on. Her mouth opened over him, sucking him deep, her tongue running up and down the front and sides with an expert precision that almost made him weep like a girl.
After endless minutes of sweet torture, she pushed him to the edge, until he exploded in her mouth, his hips jerking as the brutal release of his orgasm crashed through him, pulling him deep into the pit. The last conscious thought echoing over and over in his head as he came was:
Mine.
Then he didn't think anymore.
nineteen
STONE SAT IN the squad car. Fingers gripping the wheel, he stared at the door leading to the station and tried desperately not to panic.
"I can't do this. I've got a pile of paperwork that'll ground me in there all day, plus a double shift. You may have won over Devine, but those guys in there are hard-core, mean-ass brutes who'll eat you alive. And me. I'd have to transfer, and I just got used to Verily. I'm not fucking doing this."
No answer.
"Just because you don't piss me off in the car doesn't mean you can handle the station. And no, you can't stay with Robert, because you're getting way too attached to him. We need to learn to survive on our own. Not be needy for happiness or shit like that. We need to distance ourselves from both of them. Right?"
Still nothing. He glanced in the mirror.
She sat in her usual position in the backseat, body trembling with excitement. The damn rat fink now held Devine in the palm of her dainty paw, but she'd never make it with the others. His partner now admitted her coolness and even started sneaking her treats. Ridiculous.
Pinky and Robert had grown so close over the past few days that it was like watching the beginning of a love relationship in first bloom. They cuddled, lay on each other, shared food from one bowl, and played. How Pinky went from being catatonic and terrified of other animals to a charming hussy, he had no clue. But when she pulled the same shit and tried to block the door this morning, whimpering in disappointment at his departure for work, he decided not to rely on Arilyn and Robert and to bring her with him instead.
He was an ass.
"Fine. Let's get this over with. Not a word. And be cool. Do you understand me?"
He got out of the car, picked her up, and walked inside. After today, he might need to transfer. He'd need to make sure the guys understood it was a temporary situation and he was doing this to get laid. It was the only way to preserve his dignity.
Muttering a greeting to Jessica, the dispatcher, he pushed his way toward his desk, which was a mess of candy bar wrappers, stacks of paperwork, and the empty pack of Marlboros he still needed to smell on occasion. He hung his jacket over the back of his chair and placed Pinky down by the desk. He wished Devine were there to back him up, but he was coming in late from a dentist appointment.
"Stay quiet," he ordered. "You're so small, maybe no one will notice you. Got it?"
Pinky seemed to nod. She circled twice, then plopped down on the floor, looking content.
"What the hell is that?"
The booming v
oice came out of nowhere. Stone clenched his jaw and turned to meet Chief Dick. He pointed at Pinky, an expression of horror on his face. Yeah. This was not good.
"Uh, a dog, sir."
"I know it's a damn dog, Petty. What is the thing doing at your desk?"
Of course, his booming voice brought the crew over to investigate. Dunn and McCoy appeared, eyes bugging out as they stared, then burst into laughter. Why the hell were they there? He figured they'd be off duty by now.
"It's wearing a pink sweater!"
"Are those diamonds on its collar?"
"Why does it look like a rat?"
"It's the Taco Bell dog, but not."
Pinky raised her head, sensing the attention. Her little body began to shake as if she sensed she was being bullied.
"Cut the shit," Stone bellowed. "You're scaring her." His boss and coworkers stared at him as if he'd announced he was going to begin dancing at Lucky Cheng's. "Listen up. I'm dogsitting, her name is Pinky, and she's been through a lot of shit, so give her a break. Some jerks used her for bait, so she was torn up and abused. If you want to be a bunch of assholes, go ahead, but don't do it near her or me. She won't bother anyone, and if she acts up, I'll take her home. Okay?"