Chapter 15
MAYSON “TRUCKER” CALHOUNE
On my early morning run, I fielded calls from a couple of guys from my home station then from Bishop and Lena.
While Bishop just wanted to make sure I was good, Lena stayed on the phone a little longer. I stopped where I usually did, sitting as close to the edge of the cliff as I could and stared down over the town.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” Lena wanted to know. “I know you weren’t feeling so good before you left.”
I smiled.
“I’m good. Went through a little bit of a hitch.”
“Yeah. I heard your girlfriend was in a car wreck.” Lena spoke. “Uncle Kaos was talking to aunty Zoom about it. He was saying he might have to come down there. You know how he gets.”
Trucker laughed.
“I know. Wild horses and all that.”
“Right. Is she okay now?”
“Mm.” I replied. “She’s healing nicely. But you don’t have to worry. She’ll be good.”
“Does that mean you’re not coming back?”
“Whoa!” I chuckled. “Horses before the buggy much? We haven’t made that decision yet. My relationship is new, so I’m definitely coming back. Besides, this is not Mars. You can visit.”
“Well, what’s better than just popping over if I miss you?”
“Don’t be a nerd.”
Lena groaned. “If you need help, call us. Okay?”
“Okay, my love.”
Long after I was off the call with her, I shoved my almost dead phone into my pocket and exhaled and leaned back on my palms. There were so many thoughts flowing through my head until I was dizzy.
To say I loved Taji was stalker mentality as we just met. But the feelings I had for her were strong—strong.
Finding out she was hurt caused my soul to leave my body then the rage I felt afterward was enough to cause a volcanic eruption.
She was different than any woman I’d ever met, and I didn’t want my insecurities to ruin this.
Eventually, I made my way back to the house.
Taji was moving around but she hadn’t left her room yet. Instead of bothering her, I showered, shaved and dug through my bag to find something to wear before making my way down the stairs.
By this time, Taji was in the kitchen, listening to music on her laptop while making breakfast. The smell of coffee drew me to the coffee maker to serve myself.
“How was your sleep?” I asked.
She kissed me, grinned and handed me a plate piled high with breakfast sausages, toast and scrambled eggs.
“Trying to find a way to my heart, Sprite?”
Taji moaned, inhaled dramatically, stole one of my sausages and bit it.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Hey, moocher.” Trucker laughed. “No take-back-sies.”
Taji giggled.
She continued eating her stolen loot, kissed me then wandered off to pour me some orange juice.
I waited for her to join me.
Watching her, I found myself smiling as she chatted excitedly about a new project. I couldn’t stop staring at her—it wasn’t just her beauty. There was something so wholesome about her, so genuine.
Sincere happiness looked sexy on her.
“Did I tell you how beautiful you are?” I asked.
Taji blushed deeply.
“What’s wrong with you?” She asked.
“I’ve never told you how beautiful you are?” I asked. “It may be too soon to—”
“It’s not.”
I stared at her, not sure what to do, what I should be thinking of her reaction.
“Sorry—most of this is new to me and I don’t—if I do anything that makes you angry or uncomfortable or—just tell me, okay?”
“Okay.” She nodded at me.
We ate together, and I felt as if I was home.
After breakfast, she had to rush to a virtual meeting and I cleaned up, made a jug of lemonade and brought her some.
With lots of ice how she liked it.
She kissed the air toward me as thanks, and I left her to work.
Hours later, after leaving the station, I stopped to buy her some sliced fruits.
Pulling into the front yard, I found Taji sitting on the front porch with a book. When I approached her, she grinned, kissed me and sat again.
“What’s this?” She asked.
“For you—I figured we could share it?”
“Aww. I—”
The sound of an engine filled the air and both Taji and I turned toward the trees. It took a few seconds before we even saw a vehicle poked out from the trees. She placed the tray on the glass table and I accepted her hand to pull her to her feet.
We waited as two vehicles eased to a stop in the yard beside my truck.
Dax “Kaos” Forsythe climbed from behind the wheel of the first and Lennox alighted from the second. Confused, I glanced at Taji then back at them.
Kaos and I exchanged a wordless greeting by tipping our chins up at each other as he walked around to the trunk of his car.
He popped the trunck and dragged a squirming body with a bag over the head from the back and dropped him to his knees in front of Taji.
Lennox did the same with his captive.
Taji looked over at me then at the people bowing in front of her.
“What’s this?” Taji asked. “What’s happening?”
Together, Lennox and Kaos yanked the bags off our guests’ heads and Taji stepped a little closer to my side.
“This is kidnapping!” Ryan growled. “I’ll have you all arrested.”
“Shut up.” Lennox barked. “Speak only when you’re spoken to.”
“You remember Esther, don’t you, Taji?” I asked. “And I don’t know if you’re familiar with Ryan Carling.”
“Yes, Esther.” Taji paused. “But isn’t Ryan one of your cadets?”
Lennox made a disapproving sound in his throat.
Taji sniffed the air then toward me.
I nodded. “He was. I mean, he hasn’t been to—what? Is now the time to worry about my hygiene?”
Taji frowned at me but didn’t stop sniffing.
She sniffed toward me again, then at Lennox and Kaos.
“What is that smell?” She wanted to know.
“What smell?” Kaos asked.
“You don’t smell that?” Taji leaned toward Esther. “I mean, it’s really strong when I get to—”
But she didn’t stop.
“How can you not smell that?” Taji was incredulous.
When she did the same to Ryan, she quickly looked back at me before slamming a fist into the side of Ryan’s head. When he tumbled over, she proceeded to kick him repeatedly in the ribs and anywhere else her foot could reach.
“You son of a bitch!” She screamed, still slamming her foot into him. “It was you!”
“Whoa!” Lennox called.
“What just happened?” I demanded.
“I’ll kill you!”
“Get her off!” Ryan cried. “She’s going to kill me!”
“That’s the point!” Taji kicked him harder.
I reached out and wrapped my arms around her hips to pull her off him. As much as I enjoyed seeing her kick his ass—literally—she wouldn’t do well in prison.
“You bastard!” She screeched, trying to get out of my arms and back at him. “It was you! He can’t hold me back forever. I’m going to get to you!”
“Baby, I’m going to need you to breathe.” I told her, pulling her struggling body into my arms. “It’s not like we aren’t all thinking what you’re thinking when it comes to this piece of shit. But I need you to tell me what that’s about.”
“That smell.” Taji looked up into my eyes. “That sickly, sweet smell. I haven’t smelled it since that night. It was him! That night—the night I was raped—it was him.”
I turned.
Kaos put his body between me and the man now bleeding from the nose and corner of the mouth. Esther looked terrified like she didn’t know this part to Ryan’s bullshit and now she was terrified.
She looked as if she’d seen the absolute rage in Taji and wasn’t sure what she should do about it.
I didn’t care.
This man put his hands on my woman.
He took from her something he wasn’t offered and would never deserve no matter how long he had left in his pathetic life. I wanted to tie him up by his balls and watch him dangle.
“That wasn’t enough for you.” I growled. “You got away with it, didn’t you? You got away with it but instead of just walking away, leaving well enough alone, you had to come right back.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Ryan told me. “She’s lying. You can’t believe this bitch.”
“Watch your manners.” Kaos told him in a voice like a simmering volcano. “Keep being rude and I’ll step out of the way, and you can deal with Trucker.”
“I-I had nothing to do with that.” Esther stuttered. “I didn’t know about any of that! You have to believe me.”
“What did I say about speaking when you weren’t spoken to?” Lennox wanted to know. “I won’t warn you again.”
“I know what you did.” Taji stepped toward Ryan. “I have it imprinted on my brain and if I can’t forget it, neither can you.”
When I caught her arm, she shrugged from me.
“I’m fine.” She promised.
Standing over him, Taji’s shoulder rose and fell, heavily.
“For a long time, I blamed myself for what happened.” Her voice trembled. “And after that the thought of a man touching me—well, turned my stomach. I knew that was what you wanted. That has to be the only reason you did what you did to me—to have that control.”
Ryan smirked up at her and I wanted to wipe that look off his face with my foot.
I wasn’t aware I was moving until Kaos’ large palm tightened around one of my wrists and I glanced down then up at him.
“Let her handle this.” Kaos told me. “I’ve had to learn this lesson—there are some battles you’re going to want to fight for your woman. But you shouldn’t. This is one of those.”
Straightening my back, I curled my fists at my sides and waited.
It damn near killed me.
“And you almost won.” Taji carried on. “But then you didn’t count on Trucker. There is something about a man who genuinely cares about a woman that heals her. So, you’re heading to prison and I’m going back into the bed of a man I actually want to give myself to.”
“What?” Ryan screamed.
Taji took that moment to walk over to me and held my hand. I lifted the back of her hand to my lips for a kiss. Now it was her turn to smirk at Ryan.
That angered him.
“Bitch!” Ryan lunged upward.
I brought a heavy fist down on the top of his head—with my entire weight.
He slumped to the ground, unconscious, like a cartoon character,
Taji turned her attention to Esther.
“And you.” Taji spoke, her voice cracking. “How are you wrapped up in all of this?”
Esther said nothing.