“Free chocolate milk? Hey, I’d like that. I’ll see you guys in the morning.” AJ put his bike into gear and headed for the sheriff’s office, determined not to be late for a second time.
Six
H er mouth still knew him.
A multitude of emotions tightened Dare’s chest as he sat at his desk and thought about the kiss he and Shelly had
shared. Very slowly and very deliberately, he took his finger and rubbed it across his lips, lips that less than an hour ago had tasted sweetness of the most gut-wrenching kind. It
was the kind of sweetness that made you crave something so delightful and pleasurable that it could become habit
forming.
But what got to him more than anything was the fact that
even after ten years, her mouth still knew him. That much
was evident in the way her lips had molded to his, the
familiarity of the way she had parted her mouth and the
ease in which his tongue had slid inside, staking a claim he hadn’t known he had a right to make until he had felt her
response.
He leaned back in the chair. When it came to responding to him, that was something Shelly could never hold back from doing. He’d always gotten the greatest pleasure and
enjoyment from hearing the sound of her purring in bed. He used to know just what areas on her body to touch, to
caress and to taste. Often, all it took was a look, him simply meeting her gaze with deep desire and longing in his eyes,
and she would release an indrawn sigh that let him know
she knew just what he wanted and what he considered
necessary. Those had been the times he hadn’t been able to keep his hands off her, and now it seemed, ten years
later, he still couldn’t. And it didn’t help matters any that she had kissed him as though there hadn’t been another man inside her mouth in the ten years they’d been apart. Her
mouth had ached for his, demanded everything his tongue could deliver, and he’d given it all, holding nothing back. He could have kept on kissing her for days.
Dare ran his hand over his face trying to see if doing so
would help him retain his senses. Kissing Shelly had
affected him greatly. His body had been aching and
throbbing since then, and the painful thing was that he didn’t see any relief in sight.
Over the past ten years he had dated a number of women. His sister Delaney had even painted him and his brothers as womanizers. But he felt that was as far from the truth as it could be. After he and Shelly had broken up, he’d been very selective about what women he wanted in his bed. For years he had looked for Shelly’s replacement, only to
discover such a woman didn’t exist. He hadn’t met a
woman who would hold a light to her, and he’d accepted
that and moved on. The women he’d slept with had been
there for the thrill, the adventure, but all he’d gotten was the agony of defeat upon realizing that none could make him
feel in bed the way he’d always felt with Shelly. Oh, he had
experienced pleasure, but not the kind that made you
pound your chest with your fists and holler out for more. Not the kind that compelled you to go ahead and remain inside her body since another orgasm was there on the horizon. And not the kind you could still shudder from days later, just thinking about it.
He could only get those feelings with Shelly.
Closing his eyes, Dare remembered how she had broken off their kiss and the words she’d said before he’d left her house. “You’re AJ’s father, but what was between us is over and has been for years. To me you’re just another man.”
He sighed deeply and reopened his eyes. If Shelly believed that then she was wrong. Granted, AJ was their main
concern, but what she didn’t know and what he wouldn’t tell her just yet was that his mission also included her. He
hadn’t realized until she had walked into his office two days ago that his life had been without direction for ten years.
Seeing her, finding out about AJ and knowing that he and Shelly were still attracted to each other made him want
something he thought he would never have again.
Peace and happiness.
The buzzer interrupted his thoughts. Leaning forwarding he pushed the button for the speaker-phone. “Yeah, Holly, what is it?”
“That Brockman kid is here, Sheriff. Do you want me to send him in?”
Dare again sighed deeply. “Yes, send him in.”
Dare felt AJ watching him. The kid had been doing so off and on since he’d finished the chores he’d been assigned and had come into his office to sit at a table in the corner and finish his homework.
Dare had sat behind his desk, reading over various
reports. The only sound in the room was AJ turning the
pages of his science book and Dare shuffling the pages of the report. More than once Dare had glanced up and
caught the kid looking at him, as if he were a puzzle he was trying to figure out. As soon as he’d been caught staring,
the kid had quickly lowered his eyes.
Dare wondered what was going through AJ’s mind now that he knew he was his father? The only reason Dare could
come up with as to why he’d been studying him so intently was that he was trying to find similarities in their features.
They were there. Even Holly had noticed them, although she hadn’t said anything, merely moving her gaze between
Dare and AJ several times before comprehension
appeared on her face.
Dare glanced up and caught AJ staring again and decided
to address the issue. “Is something wrong?” he asked.
AJ glanced up from his science book and glared at him. “What makes you think something is wrong?”
Dare shrugged. “Because I’ve caught you staring several times today like I’ve suddenly grown two heads or
something.”
He saw the corners of AJ lips being forced not to smile. “I hate being here. Why couldn’t I just go home after I finished everything I had to do instead of hanging around here?”
“Because your punishment was to come here for an hour after school and I intend to get my hour. Besides, if I let you leave earlier, you might think I’m turning soft.”
“That will be the day,” AJ mumbled.
Dare chuckled and went back to reading his reports.
“Is Thorn Westmoreland really your brother?”
Dare lifted his head and gazed back across the room at
AJ. My brother and your uncle, he wanted to say. Instead he responded by asking. “Who told you that?”
AJ shrugged. “Morris and Cornelius.”
Dare nodded. He knew Morris and Cornelius. The two
youngsters usually hung together and were the same age and went to the same school as AJ. “So you know Morris and Cornelius?”
AJ turned the page on his book before answering,
pretending the response was being forced from him. “Yeah, I know them. We met today after school.”
Dare nodded again. Morris and Cornelius were good kids. He knew their parents well and was glad the pair were
developing a friendship with AJ, since he considered them a good influence. Both got good grades in school, sung in the youth choir at church and were active in a number of
sports he and his brothers coached.
“Well, is he?”
Dare heard the anxiousness in AJ’s voice, although the kid was trying to downplay it. “Yes, Thorn’s my brother.”
“And Rock Mason is, too?”
“Yes. I told you the other day I had four brothers and all of them live in this area.”
AJ nodded. “And they help you coach your baseball team?”
Dare leaned back in his chair. “Yes, pretty much, although Thorn contributes to the youth of the community by teaching a special class at the high school on motorcycle safety and
Stone is involved with the Teach People to Read program for both the young and old.”
AJ nodded again. “What about the other two?”
Dare wondered at what point AJ would discover they were holding a conversation and revert back to his, I-don’t-like- cops syndrome? Well, until he did, Dare planned to milk the situation for all it was worth. “Chase owns a restaurant and coaches a youth basketball team during basketball season. His team won the state championship two years in a row.”
Dare smiled when he thought of his younger brother Storm. “My youngest brother Storm hasn’t found his niche yet.”
Other than with women, Dare decided not to add. “So he helps me coach my baseball team and he also helps
Chase with his basketball team.”
“And your sister married a prince?”
Dare’s smile widened when he thought of the baby sister he and his brothers simply adored. “Yes, although at the time we weren’t ready to give her up.”
AJ’s eyes grew wider. “Why? Girls don’t marry princes every day?”
Dare chuckled. “Yes, that may be true, but the
Westmorelands have this unspoken code when it comes to family. We stick together and claim what’s ours. Since
Delaney was the only girl, we claimed her when she was
born and weren’t ready to give her up to anyone, including a prince.”
AJ turned a few pages again, pretending further disinterest. A few moments later he asked. “What about your parents?”
Dare met AJ’s stare. “What about them?”
“Do they live around here?”
“Yes, they live within walking distance. Their only complaint is that none of us, other than Delaney, have gotten married. They’re anxious for grandkids and since they don’t see