Love Scars - 3: Stop (5 page)

It was a MolyMo Corporation check. In the remittance advice, it said Barton Dig Scholarship. I’d never heard of MolyMo Corporation, but that didn’t mean anything.

“We call it a scholarship so we can write it off. Call it a signing bonus,” he said. “Of course it comes out of your other bonus if you find what we’re looking for.”

“And if I don’t find what you’re looking for?”

“Keep it for your trouble—and your loans paid off too. We won’t forget.”

“What
are
you looking for?” I said. “And what makes you think I even know how to find whatever it is?”

“This.” He picked up an electronic device sitting on the table. It fit in the palm of his hand. “You stick this probe end into the dirt at four different places in the tunnel at Dr. Barton’s dig. While it’s set, push each of these four buttons. Twenty seconds each. That’s it. Meet me here in three weeks with the scanner, and you’re done.”

“Dirt,” I said. “You want to test the dirt?”

“What did you think?” He burst out laughing. “It was some terrorist plot? Not that exciting. We’re looking for what are called rare earth elements—though they’re actually minerals. It’s boring stuff, but the world turns on boring things more than people realize. These minerals are worth a fortune to those who know how to use them. What my company is paying you is nothing compared to their big picture.”

“Wow, it’s so small.” I turned the device over in my hand. “It sounds too easy.”

“It is.” Steve stood up. “Look, Nora. It’s no big mystery. You just got lucky. In the right place at the right time. Enjoy it.”

I looked at the envelope in my other hand.

“Deposit the check today,” Steve said. “It’s yours. Just remember, no one can know about this. Not even Dr. Barton. He’s afraid of companies like mine. He thinks we’ll desecrate sacred ground. I hope you can see that’s not the case.”

“But won’t you destroy the dig eventually if the minerals you want are there?”

“Not at all! There are new extraction techniques for selective targeting. If we do find what we’re looking for, the grant money Barton receives will fund his work for the rest of his life and beyond. You’ll be a hero. This is
an everybody
-wins scenario.”

He made it sound so good, but as I watched him walk away I felt like something was off. He was mean to that red-haired girl, Nicole. She seemed afraid of him, but I couldn’t know. Maybe she made a deal with MolyMo, like I had, and Steve was just making sure she kept her part of the bargain.

And of course he was right. There was nothing illegal about testing dirt.

I put the envelope and scanner in my bag and headed for my car. Stacey’s dinner was in a couple of hours, and I still had to pick up the cake. I put the windows down in the car, thinking of that check in my bag. If I wanted to, tomorrow I could go buy a car with working air conditioning. It seemed like a dream.

I pulled onto Highway 50, and it hit me once again: Stacey was eighteen. We were free of Child Family Services. As Lisa put it, I could think of my own happiness now. If I was willing to work for it, there was a future available for me not filled with pain and fear and worry.

“Foresthill!” I screamed at the steering wheel. “Foresthill! Foresthill!”

No monsters here.

I was going to beat this thing. I’d wait until tomorrow to deposit Steve’s check. Now I wanted to pick up the cake, get home, and take a shower and wash my hair. I took the Auburn-Folsom exit from Highway 50, and as I passed the roadside billboard for BlueMagick I remembered that Lisa told Brad to bring J.D. tonight. My stomach got all fluttery, and I couldn’t stop myself from smiling.

I stopped at the Raley’s bakery and bought a couple small bags of ice to pack around the cake box so the icing wouldn’t slide off on the short drive home. Yesterday, this would have depressed me. Now it was a funny anecdote.

As I expected, no one was home. Today was Stacey’s first day at the restaurant, and Lisa was training her during a lunch shift. I put the cake on the kitchen counter and went to take a shower. It felt so good to wash off the sweat from driving in the hot car. I shampooed my hair, rinsed it, and lathered it up again and rinsed, then put conditioner in and left it piled on my head. I soaped up my body and turned the water temperature to lukewarm and ran the spray over my skin with the hand-held showerhead.

I closed my eyes and let the water run over my breasts, imagining what it would be like if J.D. stepped in with me. I’d lean back against his chest and feel his arms around my shoulders, his hands on my breasts teasing my nipples. I aimed the water spray between my legs and set it to pulse.

I remembered the feel of J.D.’s cock, and my muscles clenched with wanting him inside me. Quivering with the pulsing water, I steadied myself against the tiles until I shuddered with a serviceable orgasm. Not great, but it would do.

I blow-dried my hair and rolled it up. I laid down for a few minutes on my stomach, my head at the foot of the bed. I rested my head on my crossed arms and enjoyed the warm air on my naked skin. I inhaled deeply and exhaled, blowing out any lingering stress. I had a check for $50,000 in my bag! The relief I felt was amazing. I closed my eyes for a few minutes, just to let my hair set.

Happy chattering filtered in from the kitchen through my bedroom’s open door. I opened my eyes and sat up, naked on my bed. I must have fallen asleep. Lisa and Stacey were home from work.

At the sound of the back door sliding open Stacey called out, “Hi, Frank!”

“So how was the first day?” Frank said.

“Ugh! I’m
so
tired!” Stacey sounded exhausted and happy all at once. Proud of herself. I was happy for her. That first day at the first job is such a great feeling.

I aimed the hot air from the blow dryer at my rolled up hair, then let the rollers sit for a few minutes while I decided what to wear.

“Oh, how nice,” I heard Frank say flatly. “Brad’s here.”

“Happy Birthday, kid!” Brad’s cheerful voice sounded.

“Happy birthday, Stacey,” said someone else.

Butterflies played over my stomach. That was J.D.’s low tone.

I chose my usual shorts and a new pink cotton tank top with cut-out snowdrops along the top. The back was all cut-outs in flower shapes that showed a lot of skin.

I took out the rollers and brushed out my hair. I love the feeling of my hair falling on my shoulders, but I wanted to show off my bare skin, so I grabbed a scrunchie for a ponytail. I put on a little blush and lip gloss and my favorite sterling silver snowdrop earrings.

J.D. had come. It had to mean he wasn’t completely repulsed by me. I felt my cheeks redden on the way out to the kitchen, thinking about my fantasizing earlier. The release in the shower was nice, but not enough. I had real feelings for J.D., and I didn’t want them stop.

I wanted Jaxom Draco Reider in my bed again, and not merely to keep me company when I slept.

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Coming next … Part 4: Exposed.
Nora confronts her fears and discovers J.D.’s secret. As Lisa deals with what she’s learned about Brad, preparations go forward for the wedding—and Frank asks Brad to be his best man.

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Love Scars – 4: Exposed
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Love Scars – a new adult romance serial

Part 1:
Scratch

Part 2:
Deeper

Part 3: Stop

Part 4: Exposed

Part 5: Cover

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