CHAPTER THREE
REBEL
The look on her face was priceless. I had to keep myself from laughing when I dove so I wouldn’t inhale an ass ton of water. She’d gone from curiously staring in my direction to scowling in disgust. I would definitely have some fun with this.
I’d seen Larry’s girlfriend around here and there. This girl had to be her daughter. The moving van out front indicated that she’d be here a while. It was important for her to know right from the start that she was in for a world of hurt. After that punch in the face, she’d practically begged me to chew her up and spit her out. That wine red hair and the scowl she’d shot me only made me want it that much more.
I emerged from the water, climbing out of the pool and flopping back onto my lounge chair. She still stood on her balcony smoking weed but she’d averted her gaze. That gave me the opportunity to ogle her.
Her long red hair, likely dyed, tumbled down her back. It shone brighter in the light of day. A pair of cut offs revealed a shapely ass and legs that I’d love to have wrapped around my head while I dove between them. She was too far away for me to see her eyes, but I knew they were bluer than mine. My cock stirred as I remembered the fear flashing within them.
The fates had smiled on me today, delivering her right to me. No doubt she had to be nervous as hell now that she knew we were neighbors. She probably hadn’t expected to see me again. I was definitely going to take advantage of this situation. This girl would have regrets.
“Hey, assface. I thought we were supposed to meet for lunch. I waited for you.” Auryn strolled into my backyard, a takeout bag clutched in one hand. He dragged another lounge chair over next to mine, pausing to slap me upside the head before sitting down.
Not many people would get away with that. Auryn Brewer had been my best friend since we were ten. A solid eleven years now. He’d taken enough smacks of his own to be able to dish out a few.
“I forgot.” I lifted one shoulder in a half shrug. Eyeing his bag, I asked, “Did you bring me anything?”
“Hell no. You ditched me.” Digging into the bag, Auryn pulled out a meatball sub sandwich. “This place makes the best sandwiches. What had you so preoccupied you left me sitting at the restaurant for an hour?”
I’d planned to meet him. But then I got lazy and lacked the motivation to do so. Once I noticed my new neighbor, I’d decided to hang out at home instead.
Without saying a word, I nodded to the redhead on the balcony next door. She stubbed out her joint on the railing before going back inside. That had to be her bedroom.
Auryn followed my nod, catching a glimpse of her before she disappeared. “Ahh, I see. I guess I’ll always come second to a shot at new pussy. She’s hot.”
“I can’t fuck her,” I said with a shake of my head. “She’s Larry Wilkins’ stepdaughter. Just moved in. She’s also the chick from the bar last night. The one I told you about.”
“The one responsible for almost breaking your nose? Nice.” Auryn nodded to my bruised face, talking with a mouthful of meatball sub. “I fail to see why you can’t fuck her. She’s right there. Convenient.”
“Exactly. She’s right there. Can’t get rid of her after. Too bad. I owe her some pain.” Folding my hands behind my head, I closed my eyes and soaked in the afternoon sun. Nice way to spend a Sunday. Too bad I had a job to do later.
Auryn didn’t share my opinion. “I’d still fuck her. Hell, if you don’t want to, I’ll hit that.”
I cracked open one eye. “Don’t you fucking dare. She’s off limits.”
He chuckled, helping himself to what was left of my beer. “You’re pretty possessive for a guy that doesn’t want her. What do you care? You said you’re not interested.”
“I didn’t say I wasn’t interested. Just said I can’t fuck her. Besides, her mom married money. She’s not my type.” I wasn’t interested in a gold digger. I doubted the apple fell very far from the tree.
“So what?” Auryn countered, his sandwich dripping sauce into the wrapper. “You’re not fucking her mom. What does it matter?”
Auryn didn’t have many standards when it came to pussy. He’d fuck anything with a vagina simply for the conquest. To add another check to his scorecard. With his platinum hair perfectly cut and styled and the deep brown eyes the ladies seemed to love, he had no problems scoring.
Not that I had problems landing enough pussy to keep me satisfied. The difference between Auryn and me was that he didn’t take that kind of thing too seriously. It was a joke to him. I tended to be more focused. I had a business to run, and I wasn’t interested in letting anything or anyone fuck with that.
Ignoring Auryn’s question, I plucked a fat joint from the package of pre-rolled joints next to my chair. I sparked it up while reaching into the cooler on my other side for another drink.
“Did you confirm the meet at Destiny tonight?” I asked, sucking in a deep lungful of smoke.
“Yeah, eight o’clock. The guy said he’ll be there. Should we bring the others?” Stuffing the last bite of meatball sub in his mouth, Auryn helped himself to a fresh beer from the cooler.
I considered his inquiry. We were meeting a buyer at the Destiny Church graveyard, an abandoned church on the edge of town with a long forgotten graveyard filled with crumbled headstones and overgrown foliage. The fact that it backed onto the forest on the west side of town made it perfect for parties. We’d been doing business there since high school. The location had come to be associated with our parties and black market dealings, giving us the name the Graveyard Kings.
There were five of us. We were a tight knit group. I didn’t trust anyone outside of my crew. Hell, I didn’t even really like anyone else.
There was nothing we couldn’t get our hands on. Drugs and weapons were common requests of course. Although there were items most wouldn’t expect us to supply. Everything from laundry detergent to baby formula and even exotic animals. It didn’t stop there. We’d been known to supply human organs when the money was right.
Tonight was a basic sale. Prescription drugs. A common request. Easy enough to get our hands on through our many sources.
“We should probably bring Casper,” I decided, reaching for my phone to text him. Casper Callahan was a take no shit kind of guy who had a way of intimidating with his mere presence alone. Most people didn’t fuck with him.
“Good call,” Auryn agreed. “I already picked up the stuff. We’re good to go.”
Try as I might to resist, my gaze kept darting to my new neighbor’s balcony window. With the daylight reflecting off the glass, I couldn’t see inside. Was she in there? Could she see me? Just in case, I tore my gaze away, looking at Auryn instead.
“Hi, boys. Enjoying the sun?” My mother emerged from the house dressed in yoga pants and a tank top, her brown hair twisted up in a bun.
“Hey, Mrs. Kane,” Auryn greeted her with an ass kissing smile. “You look lovely today.”
I slapped him in the back of the head, ignoring the frown it brought to my mom’s face. Auryn slapped me right back, his palm making contact with my bare chest. The loud smack broke the stillness.
“Stop with the Mrs. Kane nonsense. Call me Natalie.” Turning to me, Mom added, “Rebel, I have some things for you to take over to the neighbor’s house. A basket to welcome Mr. Wilkins’ new wife to the neighborhood. I’m on my way out to yoga. Will you run it over please?”
I took another toke of my joint, making sure to blow the smoke away from her. “You’re kidding, right? Get Arwen to do it. I’m busy.”
I didn’t see why my sister couldn’t do it. She was friendlier than me and would make a better first impression. Despite being only fifteen, she was a lot like my mom already, wanting to be friends with everyone. Personally, I hated everyone and had no interest in changing that.
“She’s not here,” Mom countered. “She’s got a lacrosse game today. Just do it and be nice about it. For me, okay, kiddo?”
I sighed. There was no doubt that whatever made me a stone cold prick, it came from my dad. My mom was caring and friendly. The type that would do anything for anyone. I’d often wondered what she saw in my grumpy ass father. He spent most of his time running the many businesses he owned and never had a kind word for anyone except my mother. She was the only person who’d ever made him smile. I guess that was love. They could have it.
“Fine. I’ll do it.” As much as I didn’t want to go next door, I rarely denied my mother anything. She didn’t ask much of me. Although she was the reason I’d agreed to live at home until I finished school.
“Thank you. The basket is on the kitchen table. I’ll be back before dinner time. Don’t drink too much.” She disappeared back into the house, leaving me to mutter curses beneath my breath.
Auryn chuckled, enjoying my pain. “You’ve got to let me come with you.”
“Screw that.” I chugged back the rest of my beer and passed what remained of the joint to him. “Stay here, or better yet, go home. I’ll see you later.”
Shoving off my lounge chair, I stalked inside, muttering to myself. The patio door brought me into the living room. Ignoring the basket on the table in the kitchen to my left, I went straight ahead to the staircase next to the front door.
The entire basement was my area. Since I wasn’t about to go meet the neighbor half naked, I grabbed a black t-shirt and tugged it on before trudging back up the stairs.
The basket was filled with fancy cheeses, crackers, and wine. Mom always went over the top with shit like this. Sucking in a deep breath, I grabbed the basket and left through the front door.
Fuck. This. Shit.