The Call Read online

  “Good lord, how long was I out for? I don’t even remember falling asleep.”

  He laughs and helps me up. “Almost four and a half hours. Its six thirty now. You wanna go school your twin on some COD?”

  “Hell yes.”

  »»•««

  Abraham

  We snuggle to each other in our own bed, in our house, with no one else but the dogs and rabbit around. “Abraham?”

  “Reagan?”

  She smacks my chest. “Smartass. Will you come car shopping with me tomorrow?”

  “Of course I will, sweet girl. Do you know what you want?”

  “Same thing I had. But maybe black this time. I’m pretty simple. I liked my Jeep. I’ve had it since I turned eighteen.”

  “Wow, Aunt Kathy buy it for you?” She wiggles a little bit next to me. She’s uncomfortable with this topic. “I’m going to take your body language as you saying that you bought it. Which brings to mind the conversation you and Damon had in the limo when we were rolling down my parents’ driveway. Just what exactly did Damon mean when he said ‘you can more than afford it?’ ”

  “Abraham…ugh. Okay fine. Our parents were actually loaded. They never advertised it, just as their parents before them didn’t…and so on. Neither do we. When they died, they did what their parents did and left everything to us. Well to Aunt Kathy to control until any one of our eighteenth birthdays rolled around. At which point, a third of everything that my parents ever owned was dropped into each of our bank accounts.

  “He said it because it’s true, it’s old family money that just keeps accumulating because we all still work and rarely spend a whole lot. I could go drop a half a million on a plantation and still be just fine. Hell, I could buy five and still be fine. Like I said, it’s not something that we advertise. We rarely ever dip into it. Devon dipped into his for his truck, house, and auto body shop. Damon dipped into his for his truck and a plot of land on the outskirts of the city. He’s waiting until he settles down to build a house on it.

  “And as for me? I’ve only ever dipped into mine for my Jeep. Working at Mickey’s shop has me sittin’ pretty all on my own. I even paid for college out of my own pockets.”

  “Baby, why do you act like you’re so ashamed that you have money? I wouldn’t care if you’d spent every last dime of it. Why the embarrassment?” She snuggles deeper into me.

  “Because it just makes me feel weird. To have as much money as I do, it’s not exactly a common thing. And if we did advertise it, think of all the wrong people that would have tried to befriend us. Or date us. I just don’t want to be seen as a dollar sign, ya know?”

  When my chest starts to shake with laughter, she sits up a little. “What are you laughing at?”

  “Oh, sweet girl. Have you any idea how much I’m worth? Not my parents, but me. From the jobs I’ve had since I was fourteen? You have absolutely nothing to be ashamed of. Especially because of the way you’ve handled it. I would never have known that the three of you were loaded. That’s a good thing.

  “I hate rich snobs. Why do you think I’m never around my parents or the crowd that hangs around them? I could care less how much money you have. You could be the richest human being on the planet, or have nothing to your name. I will always love you just the same, but if you don’t mind my prying, why haven’t you bought a plantation out here? You clearly want one. What’s holding you back?”

  “The same thing that’s holding Damon back, I suppose. I didn’t do it when I was with Chris, for obvious reasons. And I didn’t do it before that because I wasn’t sure where we’d all end up after Aunt Kathy moved. I’ve always known that I would follow my brothers. But none of us really knew if we’d stay in New Orleans or not.”

  “And now?”

  She looks at me confused. “And now what?”

  “What’s holding you back now?”

  That perfect half smile of hers graces her lips. “Well, see, I fell in love with this ‘Adonis of the stars’. He has his own house and a big-ass dog, and he happens to live right down the street from my wife and her baby daddy. Staying here was a no-brainer.”

  “I love you, Reagan. If you ever want to move out of this house and onto a plantation, I will follow you, if you’ll still have me. I want you to be happy. It’s the reason for my existence. All I want is whatever you want.”

  She smiles and lies back down on me. “Good night, Adonis. I love you.”

  “I love you too, sweet girl. Sleep well. I’ll take you to pick up a new Jeep first thing in the morning.”

  Only Reagan would be embarrassed of the dollar sign in her bank account. It just warms my heart that much more. I don’t know how I got so lucky. I shake my head before closing my eyes and falling into a dream…or nightmare.

  »»•««

  “Reagan? What are you doing here? Oh God, did something else happen?”

  Reagan is engulfed in light again like she was when I was comatose. She smiles at me. “No, nothing else happened, Abraham. But you need to be wary. There is darkness ahead.”

  “Darkness? Are we in danger?” She backs up a few feet, puts her arms out, and does a slow three sixty. She’s in a white sun dress. It’s almost identical to the one I first met Reagan in.

  When she is fully facing me again, blood starts to appear, blemishing the pretty dress. “Danger isn’t the half of it, Abraham.” Not being able to take my eyes off of the horrific sight unfolding before me, I stare.

  Blood is all over her stomach. She’s got blood running down her legs, and even some on her neck and lips. “Angel? How do I stop it? Please!”

  She starts to fade into the light. Her voice floats to me in the dark. “You will have to be brave. You’ll have to be smart. Your brain. Not your testosterone. I love you, Abraham.”

  »»•««

  I jolt awake. My chest is heaving and my hands are shaking. Fuck. What the hell was that about? I’m already starting to forget the dream. The more I try to remember it, the faster it fades. Damn it.

  Scrubbing my hands down my face, I roll out of bed and go into the bathroom. I close the door and turn the light on. Starring at my reflection, I try to put the dream back together. Finally I give up, turn the sink on, and splash cool water on my face.

  After I’ve relieved myself and washed my hands, I head back into the bedroom. My heart starts to race at unhealthy speeds. Reagan isn’t in bed. “Reagan?” No answer. The dogs aren’t in their bed either. “Shit.”

  Running down the hall, jumping down the stairs, and flinging myself around the corner into the kitchen, Reagan jumps. “Jesus! What the hell are you doing?”

  “What am I doing? What are you doing?” She’s sitting cross-legged on the island countertop with a pint of B&J in her lap and a spoon in her hand. She pats the countertop space next to her, opens the drawer in front of her legs, and hands me a spoon. “Seriously?”

  She gawks at me. “Uh, yeah, I’ve been living off of hospital ice cream. It was time for the good stuff. Are you in or are you out?”

  Rolling my eyes and on a sigh I say, “In.” I hop up and take the spoon she holds out. “Cherry G?”

  “Chyah. Don’t be a communist.” Laughing, I take a bite. “Good right?”

  “Mm, it is. Do you do this often? Sneak down here for a midnight snack, I mean.”

  “Every so often. You weren’t in the bed when I woke, so I decided to come down and have some ice cream. The dogs wanted out anyways.”

  “I see. You know what would make this ice cream infinitely better?”

  “Chocolate syrup?”

  I shake my head, hop down, and take the pint from her. “Lay down.”

  “Yes sir.” Her eyes light up and she lies back.

  “You’ll have to sit perfectly still for this to work.” One at a time, and very slowly, I undo the buttons on her shirt and spread it open. Dipping my spoon into the ice cream and putting a scoop onto my tongue, I lower my mouth and let the ice cream touch between her breasts.

&
nbsp; She hums her approval and I drag the ice cream all the way down her center, dipping it into her belly button, then scooping it back out with my tongue. I take it all the way to her panty line before I scoop it back into my mouth. “You want a taste?”

  Her answer comes out breathy. “Yes.” I put another scoop into my mouth. I don’t go straight to her mouth, I swirl the ice cream around both of her nipples and then up her throat. When I reach her lips, they are already parted.

  I push the ice cream into her mouth with my tongue and speak against her lips. “Good?”

  “Heaven. Abraham, if you don’t stop soon, I won’t let you throw doctors’ orders at me.”

  She puts her hands above her head. I’m past the point of no return. We can be gentle… We’ll go slow and just savor each other. I think I can do that…I hope.

  My dick jumps when she dips her finger into the pint of ice cream and pulls it out, running it over her bottom lip. Her tongue slips out and licks the ice cream off from one side to the other. Then she sucks it off of her finger. Okay, maybe I can’t be gentle.

  She sees my hesitation. “I’ll let you know if I start to hurt or get uncomfortable, I promise. But Abraham, if you don’t finish what you’ve just started, you will be bunking with Mickey.”

  She sits up and pulls my lips to hers. When I pull away, I look her in the eyes. “Okay, but I’m taking you to our bed where it’s soft. Swear you’ll tell me the second you don’t feel well.”

  “I swear. Now take me upstairs and have your way with me, stud.”

  Putting myself between her legs, she locks her ankles behind my back and grips my neck. “Yes ma’am.” She brings her mouth back to mine. When I nibble on her bottom lip, she moans, causing me to let go of her lip on a growl.

  “Hold on tight.” She tightens her body around mine while I crawl us up the bed until her head is over the pillows. “Okay.” She loosens her grip until she’s fully on the bed. The line where I trailed the ice cream down Reagan’s body is still there and shimmering at me—practically begging to be licked away.

  I flatten my tongue on her perfect skin and run it up the trail. When I make it to her lips, she grabs hold of my hair and dips her tongue into my mouth. “Abraham, don’t tease me. I’ll hurt you.”

  “Ms. Winters, is that a threat?”

  She bites down on my lip at the same time she drags her nails down my bare back. The growl that vibrates through me only seems to spur her on. Pinning her hands above her head, I duck my head into her neck. “Slow. Nice and slow.” She groans and fidgets around. “So impatient. Here.” I let her go and lift myself off of her. “Untie my bottoms.” She does, eagerly.

  “Put that work of art inside of me, where it belongs. Remind me why you’re the Adonis of the stars.”

  “With pleasure, sweet girl.” I reach inside the nightstand by the bed and pull the iPod docking station’s remote out. When I turn it on, ‘Mondo Bongo’ is playing. Perfect. I enter her slowly. This is probably the only time that she’s not complaining about how slow I’m pumping in and out of her.

  With just the moonlight streaming through the window and the sultry music echoing off the walls, it’s perfect. My lips find her neck and she moans when my teeth graze it. “Abraham.”

  “Tell me, Reagan.” My hand grasps her hip and applies a little pressure. Her back arches and she moans in response. “I need to hear it pass your lips.”

  “I love you, Abraham. God I love you so much.” Her lips meet mine but we break apart almost immediately, finding our release at the same time. My face goes to that sweet spot in the dip of her collarbone. “I love you, sweet girl. With every fiber of my being.” I stay there, lying on top of her, until our breathing and heartrates slow.

  “My Adonis,” she says as I roll out of bed, lift her into my arms, then go into the bathroom to clean us both up before heading straight back to bed. She lies her head in her spot on my chest, over my heart, and hums.

  “Sleep sweet, angel.”

  “Sweet dreams, Abraham.”

  »»•««

  Reagan

  Standing in the car lot, the salesman hands me the keys to the black Jeep, complete with sunroof and heated seats, thank you very much, that I just paid cash for. “Well, how do you like it?”

  “I don’t like it, I love it. Look how pretty, Abraham.”

  His lips turn up and he laughs. “Come on, pretty girl, let’s go home and show everyone your new hotness. You comin’ back to the house, Dev?”

  “Not just yet, I’ve got to get back to the shop and check on the status of Sam’s car. Not all of us have today off to be out buying new cars and shit all day. Plus I have to go pick Damon up from the tattoo shop at three, after his last re-shade.” He laughs. “It’s all Mickey will let him do until he’s convinced that his arm is working correctly. Then we’re going to go get Sara. You guys feel up to going out for dinner tonight with us all?”

  Abraham looks to me and I answer for us. “Yeah, that sounds doable. I’d like to get out and about again. I’m getting sick of sleeping all the damn time. I don’t want my body to get used to it.”

  “Okay, you guys want Sara and me to come get you?”

  Abraham smiles. “I’d be okay with that. Reagan’s still taking pain meds here and there. She can’t drive when she takes them. This way, Reagan, if you think you need to take one this afternoon, you can.”

  “Blah, blah, blah, let’s take this puppy for a spin, shall we?” He laughs again and opens the driver’s door for me.

  We take the long way home because I’m not ready to put her in the garage for the night just yet. When we get to the house, we see a cop leaning against his cruiser in our driveway. “What do you suppose that’s about?” Abraham looks and shrugs. I know I shouldn’t, but I get a little giddy at the prospect of them having caught Chris.

  “Only one way to find out.” I reach up and press the garage door opener that Abraham clipped to my visor. The cop kicks off of his car and uncrosses his arms.

  “It’s nice to see the two of you up and around. Though, we all knew that you, ma’am, would pull through.”

  Abraham looks at him questioningly. “You were on the scene of our accident?”

  “Yes sir. Watched her brother try to restrain her. Thought we’d have to help him and intervene before they closed the doors on your ambulance. Once you were out of sight, her body overcame her desire to get to you.”

  Abraham stares at me. “What? Don’t look at me like that.”

  He turns back to the officer. “So what’s up?”

  “Oh, right. Well we’re pretty sure that Mr. Rome has someone that is helping him out and hiding him. He hasn’t been back to the makeshift shack. We still have an officer watching it. We brought in the surrounding parishes for help. We’ve got everyone that can lend a helping hand helping us on this one.

  His picture is in every establishment around town. I just wanted to stop by and give you an update. I know it’s not much but it’s all we have as of yet. We’ve also set up additional surveillance around the neighborhood.”

  “Thanks. What else?”

  The officer puts his hands in his pockets. “I’m to ask you if you know of anyone in town that might be harboring Chris. Someone you know. Someone that might have a grudge like he does.”

  I speak before Abraham gets the chance. “Uh yeah, go check out Sasha Lafayette. She had a part in some contact I had with Chris a few weeks ago.”

  “Reagan, surely you don’t think that Sasha would be out to hurt either of us?”

  My mouth drops open a bit. “Really? You don’t think that your hell-bent ex-girlfriend, might be trying get me away from you by any means necessary? Even if it means associating herself with my hell-bent ex. Yes, Abraham, I do believe that she would go to extraordinary lengths to get her nose as far up your mother’s ass as possible and become a part of ‘The Stones.’”

  His teeth clench and he looks back to the officer. “It wouldn’t hurt to look into it. If there
’s nothing else?”

  “Nope, that’s it. If you think of anything else, give me a call. And if anything changes or comes to light, I’ll call you.”

  “Thank you.” I head for the door before the words have left Abraham’s mouth.

  Ugh, fucking infuriating. “Reagan, what the hell?” He’s on my heels and shuts the door behind us. “Angel?”

  I whip my body around to face him. “So you think that she had no idea then, about how diabolical Chris really was when she teamed up with him for that picture? You think that it’s so absurd for your ex to go crazy like mine is?”

  He stops in the middle of the room and gapes at me. “Are you seriously pissed because I question whether or not Sasha is in cahoots with Chris? What the fuck, Reagan?”

  Closing my eyes and taking a deep breath I say, “Okay. Look it, I’m upset because it felt like you were defending the bitch. She’s still a really touchy subject. It seems like every time I turn around, there she is. Keep in mind that she is just as capable as Chris is. That’s all, Abraham.”

  “Okay, fine. I accept your premise about Sasha’s ‘maybe involvement’. However, I reject your conclusion as to you thinking that you have anything to worry about between her and I. No, you didn’t use those words exactly, but you did imply it. I will not fight with you over exes, Reagan. I’ve no interest in Sasha, friend or otherwise. End of story. Am I understood? Because I’ll not repeat it every time she’s brought up.”

  Is it wrong that I’m a little turned on? He’s got that whole sexy, brooding, man of power, thing going on. “Okay.”

  He cocks a brow, surprised there isn’t going to be any further argument. “Okay?”

  “Yes. Okay.” He stalks across the room at me. His thumb makes me release my bottom lip from my teeth.

  “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say that your panties are a little wet, Ms. Winters.”

  His hand still holds my chin up so that my face is looking up at his. “Why don’t you put your hand down there and find out?” His jaw clenches, his face tilts down, and his eyes grow a little darker.