Her entire body shuddered against mine, and it was all I could do not to come in my pants. Holding her body against mine as she moaned but continued to roll her hips over me, I said what I know she didn’t believe the first time. “I love you, Madeline.” She wrapped her arms around my neck, and I felt her rapid heartbeat against my chest when she fell against it. “I fucking love you.”
“I love you, too,” she said, making my breath catch, but before I could react further, she added in a breathless whisper, “please don’t break my heart.”
My arms wrapped around her as tightly as they had when she first jumped in them. “Never.” I kissed and licked her neck then kissed my beauty mark, taking in the sweet taste of her soft skin. “Never, Maddie baby. I promise you this forever.”
To my surprise, when I pulled away, her eyes were flooded again, but she cradled my face, and those beautiful baby blues gazed into my eyes. “I so wanna believe you.”
“Believe it,” I said almost breathlessly. “My head doesn’t have time or room to think of anyone or anything else since my lips first tasted yours. Just promise me you won’t make me lose my mind. Please.”
She smiled even through her teary eyes. “You had me at Vroom!” She laughed against my lips before kissing them then explained. “Hell, that vroom of your bike had me daydreaming years ago. I just never imagined my fantasies would ever come to life. I love you, Nico.”
I could have died and gone to heaven right then. I was certain I’d never yearn for anything more as long as I lived. My whole life I’d never felt as content as I did after hearing her say she loved me too. But we were just kids and I knew it. Craziest thing was, before Madeline walked into my life and turned it upside down, I had zero intentions of getting into any kind of relationship any time even in the distant future. At that moment in my life, sitting there holding Madeline in my arms, not even twenty years old yet, I felt ready to marry her.
Chapter 8: My Weakness
I knew Madeline was artistic. We’d spoken about her passion for painting plenty of times. I’d seen some of the photos of her painting early on. She showed me on her phone, including the ones she painted of me. Even when I saw one of the finished pieces in person, as impressed as I was, I imagined it was something that took her days, maybe weeks, to finish. There was so much delicate detail put into them it was hard to imagine her finishing one up in under a day much less in a few hours.
Just a week after our first almost breakup, we were out at one of her favorite places by the river. Madeline wanted to bring her easel and painting tools out to the abandoned pier I introduced her to, days ago. I thought we were there so she could demonstrate her skill as it happened. I’d begun to resort to using the shop’s delivery van on the days when Shelby couldn’t get access to her mom’s car. It was either that or not see Madeline that night since her mom would think it too odd that her sister or Shelby weren’t going out with her. The three did everything together, and at this point, Madeline and I had become pretty much inseparable.
We’d also gotten braver. Braver or we were so hysterically in love it blinded our better judgment. Loretta worked as an accountant at the feed store in town. But not always in the day. She liked putting some extra hours in, and the store needed help in other areas some days. It stayed open until nine, and on the nights she stayed to help out with closing duties, she was there until after ten.
While I wasn’t stupid enough to dare step foot in their home, I did risk picking her up there the evenings her mom worked late. Especially on a night like this one when Madeline wanted to bring her easel. So I needed the van.
The pier was out by one of the many coves in the river that ran between the mountains. It was likely built by the long ago hermits who lived on the property just adjacent to it. But that cabin had long been destroyed by a fire, and since it was so far out and away from any roads, no one ever bothered to rebuild it. The only road to get there hadn’t even been kept up in years. If it weren’t for my brothers and me, who tried to at least keep the pathway open just so we could get out there without having to hike the whole way, it would have been overrun by weeds and grass by now.
The girls who’d never been out there loved it. They couldn’t believe in all the years they’d lived in Huntsville they never knew about it. But it was how we liked it. My brothers and I kept it hushed so it was our special place to hang out away from the crowds.
Maybe a few years back my brothers would’ve balked at my sharing it even with these girls, but they didn’t mind, and I still made the girls promise to keep it our secret. Madeline loved it and assured me she didn’t want anyone else to know about it either.
It was a few minutes just outside of Huntsville, but finding the unmarked road off the highway that got you there was the trick. We’d dropped off Maggie and Shelby at the theater where we agreed to meet again in a few hours when the show let out, and Madeline and I headed out to the pier. It was still light out, but I’d come prepared with lanterns since I figured there was no way she’d be done with her painting before dark.
When we got out there, Madeline cheerfully set up her easel and tools on the pier, stopping only when I attacked her, and we rolled around wildly as we always did. After her climax in Shelby’s back yard, things had progressed to other orgasm-inducing activities, but I dared not even try to push it any further. Crossing the line to other more forbidden things, especially given the fact that she was a virgin, was still out of the question.
Madeline worked quickly to paint the pier, the surrounding trees, and the reflection of the sun against the river's water. “I don’t wanna lose the light,” she said, giggling as I leaned in and kissed her deeply.
Pulling out a cigarette, I stopped short when she gave me the look. “I thought we talked about this.”
My shoulders dropped and I put it away. Not too long into this relationship, Madeline mentioned her grandfather dying from lung cancer. She said she’d never heard of anyone dying from lung cancer from smoking weed since most people didn’t chain smoke weed. And this was true. I’d been known to take a few puffs a day on occasion, but I could also go days without touching the stuff. A lot of times waiting the whole week until the weekend.
Leaning in to kiss her, I smiled. “Sorry, habit. This was the last pack I bought. I won’t be buying anymore. I promise.”
After kissing her a few more times, I opened a can of pop, because I needed something to keep my ravenous mouth occupied or I’d kiss her all night. I leaned back onto my hand on the other side of the easel where she asked me to stay and behave for a while. Not even forty-five minutes after she started, she announced she was just adding the finishing touches and she’d be done.
“No way.”
“Yes.” She smiled brightly. “This wasn’t too difficult. Painting people takes a lot more time, but I wanted to get this done before the sun was completely gone. Stay there though. I don’t want you to see it yet.”
As much as I really was interested in seeing the painting, the view from where I was sitting was much better. “I know I’ve said it a hundred times, but I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of staring at you. You’re mesmerizing.”
“Thank you.” She stopped to sigh all whimsically as she often did when she was being dramatic. “Talk about mesmerizing. I’ll never forget the first time I laid eyes on you.”
“Yeah? Where was that?”
“Church.” She giggled.
“What? I don’t go to church. Well, not since I was very young.”
I swallowed back the reason why I’d stopped going because I didn’t want to kill the cheery mood.
“I do, you heathen.” She laughed, brushing a few more quick strokes onto her canvas. “But it wasn’t inside the church; it was outside. Church had just let out, and we were walking through the bake sale. We were in the parking lot, walking around all the little tents when I looked up and . . .” She stopped as if to muse at the memory, gazing out into the water. “Beautiful.”
The odd
compliment had me smiling like a goofball, I was sure. “I’ve been called lots of things, Madeline, but I don’t think I’ve ever been called beautiful.”
She turned to me, looking genuinely surprised. “No way. I’ve even heard other girls refer to you and your brothers as beautiful. Well, mostly when they’re referring to your eyes. But I think it’s the whole package that makes you beautiful. The eyes against that skin color, that smile, the bad-boy image, and all the tats, and you didn’t even have as many as you do now back then. That was a few years ago. I don’t know what I was more surprised about back then, what you actually looked like up close, or that you were anywhere near a church.”
“Ha-ha,” I said, feigning insult. It only made her laugh more. “My grandma only makes the best buñuelos in all of Kentucky. I hear people from out of town drive out here when they have bake sales just to get them,” I said proudly. “Each time they have a sale, she completely sells out, and she makes a ton.”
“Oh, I know,” she agreed, wide-eyed, then laughed. “Mama tried to make them once and totally butchered them. She finally had to admit something made by the notorious Cortez clan was one of her favorite things from the bake sale.”
I stared at her for a moment as she continued to paint without elaborating further about Loretta’s feelings about my family. “Your mom really thinks we’re that bad, huh?”
That had her turning to look at me, and her smile flattened. “I don’t think so . . . it’s just that . . .”
“Don’t worry about it,” I said, smiling and letting her off the hook. “I’m aware of the image we’ve made for ourselves over the years. Tats and smoking don’t help.”
She didn’t look so remorseful suddenly, and she lifted a brow. “Or driving around town every night with a different girl on your bike. Girls with the worst reputation around.”
“I’m not arguing, baby,” I said sweetly, hoping this conversation wouldn’t take a turn. “I’m agreeing. We haven’t made the best impression on most.”
“I’ve always known you were good deep inside,” she countered. “Like I’ve said before, even Mama has to know it. We’ve spoken to your grandma and daddy plenty of times around town. Your grandma’s the sweetest thing, and your dad is always very respectful and polite. No way can the apples fall that far from the tree. That day I first saw you at the bake sale, Mama even commented that, as sweet as your grandma is, she must crack a whip to have you boys there helping her so willingly.”
That made me laugh. “She doesn’t have to, too often anymore, but let me tell you, to this day, it’s all about sí, senora this and sí, senora that.”
Madeline was smiling big again and that relieved me. I already knew she was fickle as shit when it came to the topic of other girls and me. “Is that like yes, ma’am?”
“Exactly. If we ever slip and answer to her calling us with a what?, we get a chankla right to the head. And let me tell you, that little old lady has pitch perfect aim.”
I was sure that’d get a bigger laugh out of Madeline, but she just smiled, saying something about how all the chankla memes online were hilarious. It felt like a strange and sudden mood change at such an odd moment. I was so attuned to her every expression now; it was like I already knew her inside out. Something was wrong and then she laid it on me.
“Mama asked me about us.” My stomach dropped just as she glanced at me, and to my surprise, now she laughed. “Oh my God, your face got as white as mine.”
“What did she say?”
What the fuck are we doing here? was what I really felt like asking. Why was she still risking this if her mother was onto us?
“You knew she was bound to hear the rumors, but I’ve also told you how much she hates how easily stories get turned into something completely different around town. She was livid when she heard about the stories going around that she’d pulled a shotgun on boys who either me or Maggie had tried sneaking in late at night.”
“I never heard that one,” I said with a frown.
I really hadn’t. I sure as hell would’ve asked her about it if I’d heard that version of the stories.
“Well, of course, it wasn’t true, but it was out there, and there’ve been others about her. Haven’t heard any lately, but every now and again, there’s a new speculation about who our daddy really is.”
Now those I had heard, but I didn’t comment because they were never good, and Madeline already sounded annoyed by this. Loretta was known as a hard ass and seemingly unapproachable around town. Because of this, she didn’t have many female friends. But it wasn’t hard to see where Madeline and Maggie got their good looks. For a woman in her late thirties or early forties, Loretta had it going on.
So, of course, the rumors about her, started, no doubt, by the petty women in town, were ongoing. Anytime she’d been seen so much as smiling at any man, she must have been doing him. Ama had even heard stories of some of the handymen around town having to pass up a job at the Hellman’s place because their wives forbade it. And yet, except for the night I saw her way out in Kings Falls, I’d yet to see or even hear about her out in the company of any man.
But this was a good thing. If Loretta had been unfairly labeled the way my brothers and I had, then maybe she’d eventually come around about Maddie and me. Eventually. Until then I wasn’t looking forward to dealing with the unpleasantness of knowing she likely wouldn’t approve.
“So what’d you tell her?”
“I told her we were friends and I’ve recently been seen chatting with you a few times and that’s all it was. After all the times we’d heard hearsay about others and even our family that were always unfounded, only thing she was worried about was my reputation. Warned me not to be seen alone with you too often before the rumors ran too rampant. “Other boys are watching, Madeline.” She mimicked her mother, and I had to smile because she laughed. “You don’t want them thinking even for a minute that boy has polluted you with his evil ways.”
Her smile waned when I couldn’t help but frown. Only I wasn’t frowning about the polluting comment. Just the thought that other boys might be watching pissed me off. So far, I’d made sure if they were watching they’d better know she was off limits—and not just because of her gun-toting mama now.
Madeline moved over to where she could cuddle up next to me. “You don’t know how badly I want to tell Mama I can hardly wait for you to pollute me with your evil ways.”
As always, her hand on my thigh had my crotch awakening, despite the topic of her mom asking about us. “Maddie, baby. . . “ I stopped her hand before it went any higher. “You sure she bought it? You don’t think she might start following you or anything?”
My glancing around only made Madeline laugh. “I promise you one thing about Mama is she’s meticulous when it comes to work. Hasn’t missed a day in years and wouldn’t dream of taking a day off just to spy on her teenagers.”
Her hand started up under my shirt as I gave in, despite my still anxious nerves, and lay back on the pier. Midway through another one of our marathon kisses, it hit me, and I managed to pull away. “Are you done with the painting?” She nodded with a big smile. “You’re shitting me. Let’s see it.”
She pulled away quickly and got up on her knees in front of the easel. Staring at it for a moment, she frowned. “Not my best, but I was trying to hurry before we lost the sun.”
I sat up just as she pulled the canvas off the easel. The sun was gone now, but the moon was bright enough I could still see her and the canvas clearly. She turned it toward me so I could see, and my jaw dropped. I was blown away, not by her talent because I already knew she had it, but by how fast she’d put this together.
I sat all the way up and got on my knees in front of the easel. “Not your best work?” I turned to her then back to the painting. “Are you kidding me? This is amazing. And you did this all in under an hour and as casually as if you were just having some fun with the brush.”
“I was just having some fun,” she said as I
got closer. “It’s still missing a lot of detail, like the—” she stopped when I brought my hand behind her neck and kissed her.
As if I couldn’t be more impressed by her already, this totally had me blown away. I kissed her deeply, making her moan, then pulled away momentarily just to look at her. “Beauty, brains . . .” I smiled before going in for another kiss. “And talent. A combination I had no idea could be so hot.”
I brought her down onto me, and she giggled for what I thought was going to be just another one of our amazing marathon make-out sessions. But her hands roamed by body until one of them stopped on my erection over my pants, making me freeze. She pulled away to gaze at me, her eyelids heavy over her smoldering blue eyes.
I swallowed hard, licking my lips, and smiled nervously. “Don’t look at me that way.”
“What way?” she asked with a smirk, but her hand caressed my erection over my pants, and I squeezed my eyes shut.
“Baby, no. We can’t.”
“Can’t what?”
That had me opening my eyes because I heard the inference in her tone. “We can’t do any more than we’ve already done. Your mom—”
“Is at work and has no idea this place even exists.” I shook my head, but she went on. “Even Shelby and prissy little weed-is-bad-for-you June have done way more than we have. At least I’d be doing it with my boyfriend who loves and respects me, which is more than I can say about most—”
“Stop,” I said, putting my finger on her lips because I could already tell it wouldn’t take too much to convince me.
Madeline opened her mouth, taking my finger in and starting to suck, but stopped to laugh when I squeezed my legs together in reaction. That alone had my knees going weak, and I took advantage of her laugher to pull my finger away. “Even if the thought of your mother lurking around some of these trees with her shotgun didn’t scare the shit out of me, your first time will not be on this pier where we’ll both end up with splinters in our asses.”