Broken Dreams (Broken Series) (3 page)

That night had been one to remember. Luke broke up with his girlfriend for Mallory that night, and I’d driven Rainey home. Since then, we’d kind of been together, but it wasn’t until she left to settle her affairs in LA for the summer that I realized how much fun we were going to have in the coming weeks. I planned to treat her right, not only because I liked her, but also to make up for being an ass that first night.

We’d texted back and forth nearly the whole time she was back in LA. She was witty and sarcastic, just like I remembered. The only thing that had changed about her, it seemed, was her weight. I’d never believed she was fat, but I knew she’
d been picked on a lot during high school for her size. It pissed me off but Rainey took it with class and usually delivered a reply to her tormentors that cut them down in a way that led them to leave her alone.

It was amazing to watch her in action. She never raised her voice or got emotional, either. She kept a calm demeanor, which I think made her
more frightening. She was a force to be reckoned with.

I smiled as I stole the ball away from Luke. Best friend or not, I could still whoop his ass at basketball. He chased after me down the court but never had a chance. I tossed the ball and it swished into the net.
I cheered my success and Luke grumbled something about me being a cheater. I let it go and grinned wider.

“Jealousy will get you nowhere, my friend,” I said. It was so much fun to taunt him. He gave me the evil eye.

We played for nearly an hour before he gave up the fight.

“Let’s call it a day,” he suggested. He looked forlorn and depressed. I laughed at his lack of enthusiasm.

“Sure thing, Luke. What’s on the agenda tonight?” I asked, wondering if he and Mallory would come to the bar.

Luke had sworn off drinking a
while, afraid he was going to turn into his alcoholic father. I knew he would be fine, especially with Mallory to keep him in check. But he was still a little gun shy about drinking these days.

“Mal and I will probably come have dinner at the bar. If it stays nice like this, she said she wanted to eat outside on the deck.”

“Great. I’ve got to head home and shower. I’ll see you guys there,” I said as I changed out of my basketball shoes and back into my work shoes. I bumped his knuckles with mine and made my way to my truck. As I tossed my bag in the passenger seat, I looked back at the court where Luke was dribbling down the court. He did it every time we played.

Luke wasn’t out of shape by any means, but he was several inches shorter than me, so he could never quite catch up to my pace when we played
.

I hopped into the truck and started it up. My cell phone was still in the cup holder and I noticed it was blinking. I waited for the screen to brighten and clicked into my text messages. I ha
d two waiting from Rainey.

Just got back. Remind me to never let my mother pick me up at the airport.

I laughed as I typed out a reply.

I would have been happy to pick you up ;)

I knew that would rile her up. My phone beeped almost immediately.

Not funny. You home?

I sighed. A booty call already and she’d only been back in town for less than an hour. It worked for me.

I will be in about ten minutes. Meet me?

Damn straight.

I set my phone back in the cup holder and made my way through town to my apartment. She was sitting in her mother’s mini-van in the driveway when I pulled in. I smiled and threw the truck in park.

Chapter Three

Rainey

He was hot and sweaty and I loved taking advantage of him as soon as we got into his apartment.

I was on his bed, alone,
after our romp while he took a shower. I was still a little out of breath after our activities. Baker was wild in bed and wasn’t afraid to take sex to the next level. It was one of the things I enjoyed about him. I didn’t want the emotional cuddling and pillow-talk after sex. If anything, I just wanted more sex.

So when we were finished, I wasn’t the least bit offended when he headed straight for the bathroom and never said a word to me. I just yanked a sheet across my body and laid there, perfectly content. Then I realized we were going to the bar and he’d mentioned Mallory and Luke would be there, which meant Gabby and Wolfe would probably be there, too, but not together.
Never together.

I needed to shower. I got up off his bed and walked across his room and into the bathroom. I pulled the shower curtain back and just stared at him.

Baker was blonde with insanely deep gray eyes. He kept his hair cropped short, but he kept a goatee around his lips, which drove me crazy. He was always giving me whisker burn, but he refused to shave it off whenever I complained. His stubbornness was sexy, even when it pissed me off. It was part of the reason I allowed myself to get entangled with him this summer. He was real and not lovey-dovey or needy. He liked to do his own thing and didn’t want a commitment or to be tied down.

And since my plan was to only stay for the summer,
I definitely didn’t want a messy relationship to deal with. I had enough on my plate. Baker was a perfect fling for me. Our history made it almost easier, too, since we’d seen each other naked before. Of course, seeing him naked for the first time since I’d been back in Casper had been a shock.

He wasn’t taller than he’d been the last time I saw him, but he had definitely filled out. His skinny arms and thighs had matured into thickly muscled limbs of steel. His abs were well-defined and hot as hell. His normally pale skin was tan and he looked rugged. I liked it.

But as I looked at him in the shower, I admired the more subtle changes in him. His face was older, more refined. He was going to be twenty-four in August and he didn’t look like the kid he’d been a few years ago when we went to prom. His eyes turned a dark charcoal color as he admire my nakedness in front of him.

He didn’t invite me into the shower. Instead, he lifted me into the hot spray of water and brought his lips to mine. He leaned me against the back
shower
wall and devoured me, his lips hot and searching. He sucked my bottom lip in between his teeth and I hissed, enjoying the slight pain as my fingers curled behind his neck.

My fingernails dug into his skin when his
skilled
kisses went lower, to my breasts
, pulling
a taut nipple into his mouth. I threw my head back in surrender and his mouth claimed my neck
while his fingers tweaked my nipple. He sucked on the tender skin of my throat and I moaned, certain no one had ever made me feel like this before.

It was several minutes later that he finally stepped out of the shower so I could wash my hair.
We didn’t do more than make-out, since we were both still sated, but what a make-out session it had been. I used his body wash and inhaled the masculine scent
,
clos
ing
my eyes in appreciation. I cleaned myself thoroughly, lingering on the parts he’d lavished with kisses and touches. My skin was red and somewhat raw from his goatee. I didn’t mind, though.

I spent a little extra time in the shower, relishing the hot water until a pounding on the door made me hurry.

“Rain, pick it up! I have to be at the bar in twenty minutes!” Baker shouted over the roar of the nozzle.

“Yeah, yeah,” I mumbled, certain he wouldn’t hear me.

I rinsed all the soap from my skin and turned off the water
, then
grabbed a clean towel off the shelf and flipped my head upside-down to wrap the fabric around my hair and then twist it. I straightened up, tossing the towel up over my head so it held securely
,
and then tucked a second towel around my body. I walked into Baker’s bedroom and found him standing just a few feet from the door with his hands on his hips.

“What was that you said?”

“Uhh…” I tried to remember what smart-ass comment I’d made.

“I heard you,” he said. He stalked closer to me, his towering height making me small. I backed up a step
,
but he grabbed my arms and pulled me forward. His lips lingered against mine. “Sometimes, you just need to do what you’re told.”

“Where’s the fun in that?” I smirked.

He narrowed his eyes at the exposed skin of my shoulder. “Did I do that to you?” He released my arms and traced the fleshy curve of my shoulder where a bruise was already forming.

I panicked. “No, it’s not from you,” I lied. “I bumped into an open cabinet at my mom’s today.” Baker didn’t know about the leukemia and I wasn’t about to tell him. Too many people knew already.

But the bruise worried me. I was in remission; the bruising had stopped. Baker’s rough lovemaking shouldn’t turn me black and blue. I bit my lip and noticed Baker watching me carefully.

“I’m a klutz, what can I say?” I laughed it off.

He nodded but didn’t look convinced. “Get dressed. I’ll drive you to the bar.” He turned away from me and left his bedroom.

I raced to the bathroom and used a hand towel to clear the fog that settled on the mirror.
I examined the discolored patch of skin, remembering how Baker’s thumb pressed into my shoulder when he held me still for his kiss. It hadn’t hurt, but the proof was there in black and blue. I needed to get to the doctor’s office first thing next week or Baker would be even more suspicious than he already was.

I dried off quickly and threw my clothes on. I’d worn one of my favorite tank tops
,
but with the bruise getting darker by the minute, I didn’t want to deal with questions. Especially since it was in the precise shape of a thumb. I didn’t want people thinking I was abused. So I grabbed a hoodie out of Baker’s closet and carried it into the living room where he sat, waiting for me.

“What’s going on?” he asked.

“What do you mean?” I played dumb.

“I know that bruise is from me, Rain. What I don’t know is how the hell it showed up so fast and dark when I know I didn’t hurt you.”

“I just have sensitive skin,” I said, not bothering to argue about how I’d gotten the bruise. He wasn’t an idiot.

“No one bruises that fast,” he said.

“I do. Look, it’s no big deal. Don’t we need to leave? I don’t want you to be late
.
” I grabbed my purse off his dining table and slung it over my shoulder. I lifted my arm and held up his hoodie. “I borrowed one of your sweatshirts.”

“Of course. Gotta cover up that bruise,” he mumbled sarcastically. I chose to ignore him.

He followed me out of his apartment and then opened the door for me to get into his truck. I was surprised by his gentlemanly behavior but didn’t say anything. Once I was seated in the passenger seat, he came to stand next to me.

“I don’t know what’s going on with you, Rainey, but I don’t like it. And one of these
days
, you’re going to tell me what it is that has you bruising like a peach
and getting sick at odd hours of the night.” He closed the door and then hopped in the driver’s seat.

I was speechless.

Baker never said a word about what was wrong with me. He didn’t know exactly what it was, of course, but I thought I’d been hiding my sickness pretty well. Apparently not.

We got to the bar at six and Baker kissed me chastely and then sent me to sit with Mallory and Luke while he checked on the bar. They were cuddled up together in a corner booth. It was obvious how in love with each other they were. My heart clenched a little in jealousy. No matter how much Baker and I ever cared about each other, we weren’t going to be able to have that kind of relationship.

“Hey
,
guys,” I said as I approached the table. Just as I was about to sit down in the booth, a flurry of
wild dark hair slipped past me and slid across the vinyl. “Gabby, nice to see you,” I laughed as I scooted in next to her.

“What’s your hurry?” Luke asked her.

“Wolfe was in the parking lot. Did you invite him?” She looked suspiciously at Luke.

“Actually, I invited him,” Mallory admitted with a raised hand and a guilty look. “He’s part of our little group, Gab, whether you like it or not. Besides, I thought you didn’t care about what he does?” Mallory eyed Gabby.

Gabby sighed. “I don’t care. I just wish he would find his own friends,” she muttered. We all laughed and she gave us a little smile. When Wolfe walked up to the table, her smile faded. “We’re full up,” she explained, gesturing to the full booth.

“That’s why I brought these,” Baker said as he set two bar stools at the end of the table. “It’s a little busy
,
guys, so I’m not sure how long I’ll be able to hang out. Can I get everyone a drink?”