Resist Me (Change Me Book One - standalone): McCoy Raven Boys (16 page)

Where would I go and how would I survive after leaving Ethan’s cabin? He had to return to work and his life. His furlough was ending in three days from now. Even if he offered for me to stay somewhere else with him, I wouldn’t accept it. I already put him in enough danger by coming with him here. He didn’t owe me anything.
 

I patted my pocket, making sure the phone was in there. It was powered off though. I needed to check for messages. Maybe Jessica had some new facts that would make my situation easier.
 

I was about to pull the phone out and turn it on when Ethan stood up and held his hand out to me. “Let’s eat breakfast and then we’ll go hiking.”
 

Without thinking, I took his hand. That was a mistake. A warmth spread from his skin through mine, rushing in my veins, getting hotter, spreading into all those places of my body that it shouldn’t spread into. I stood up and jerked my hand back, but the longing stayed.

“Sounds good?” he asked.
 

“Uhm… yes. Breakfast… I would love to go for a hike.” I tried to put as much enthusiasm into my words as I could muster. Keeping my mind on the beautiful outdoors was a much better idea than getting more confused over Ethan. “What can I help with in the kitchen?”

“Come with me.” He motioned with his head for me to follow. “I will show you.”

Now I just had to figure out how to get the picture of his beautiful, half-naked body out of my mind. Oh, that was going to be hard.
 

Chapter Seventeen

ETHAN
 

I couldn’t quite discern Lisbeth. One moment she seemed easy going and focused, and then she would become skittish like a shy schoolgirl, cowering with her head drawn between her shoulders. But then again, was I expecting too much from her? From what I’ve learned, she went through the horrors in the past two weeks. It was a miracle she hasn’t turned into a complete nutcase.
 

PTSD, or the Post-traumatic Stress Disorder must have come as the result of watching her friend being raped and murdered. I’ve seen too many of my Marine buddies go through that. We witnessed the terrors; we lived through the nightmares, through excruciating fear, and a complete doubt in the existence of human goodness. The fortitude could only go so far.
 

I was a lucky one—or maybe the unusually strong one, who was somehow well equipped to handle the dreads that came with my previous job. Although, let’s face it—Najia’s death was the last drop that forced me to leave the service. That’s when I decided to become the firefighter. Jack insisted it was because I chased after an adrenaline-inducing career, but that was bullshit.
 

I poured more coffee into our mugs. Lisbeth washed her hands and asked what she could make for breakfast.
 

“Let’s have eggs,” I decided. “I like scrambled. You?”

“Scrambled are good.”

“Okay then.” I got the eggs out of the fridge together with bacon, bread, peanut butter, and strawberry jam.
 

“Mmm, I love peanut butter with jam.” Lisbeth’s eyes shone with anticipation.
 

“On a bread?” I asked and then immediately realized that such an innocent question could be understood as an insinuation.
 

“Of course. What else?” she asked indifferently.
 

I wasn’t about to go there. If she was any other woman, I would have answered:
On my stomach—spread thinly from my navel, all the way down for you to taste.
But she wasn’t like the other women in my life. She would never be.

The peanut butter fantasy set my sexual dial to “half-ready”. My cock hardened a little as if that fantasy was actually happening. To get distracted, I bent down to check on the firebox. The wood inside was burning nicely. It would provide enough heat to cook our breakfast.
 

Lisbeth was already busy with breaking the eggs into a bowl and sprinkling salt and pepper into the mixture. I took care of the bacon, laying it carefully in the heated pan.
 

My kitchen wasn’t huge, and cooking together on my wood burning stove didn’t warrant much space between us. The hairs on my arm stood up on end, sending a hot shiver down to my groin whenever our arms brushed against one another. This was such a sweet torment. I wasn’t sure how long I was able to withstand that nagging need that kept building inside me.
 

“These are ready,” Lisbeth announced, meaning the eggs. They looked delicious.
 

“Great. Get the plates from there,” I pointed to one of the cupboards, “and set them on the table. The silverware is in that drawer,” I pointed to another spot. She took the pan and carried it away, turning her back to me. I needed a very cold shower. Or a very hot sex.
 

“Just ask,” she said, while standing on her tippy toes and reaching for the plates.
 

“What?” I looked at her questioningly. Did she mean… no, better not. I hoped not. She wouldn’t tease me, would she?
 

Lisbeth turned to me and raised one eyebrow. She held the pan with eggs in one hand and a plate in the other.
 

“What do you mean exactly?” I was getting even more confused.
 

“Do you ever say
‘please’
, or do you only
tell
people what to do?”

Ah, that’s what she meant. I exhaled a bit disappointed. A part of me was relieved, because no matter how much I wanted her, I resolved not to touch her. The other part… well, I wouldn’t even let
that
part get any votes in.
 

I smirked and shook my head, returning to my bacon pan.
 

“You know, a
‘please’
and a
‘thank you’
is usually very helpful. It opens a lot of doors.” She put the plate down and slid some of the scrambled eggs onto it.
 

I shot her a dubious look, more to annoy her than anything else. I was inwardly chuckling at how easily I pushed her buttons.
 

“I’m just saying.” Lisbeth reached for the second plate, still holding the pan with eggs with her other hand. Her shirt rose up a bit over the waistband of her shorts, revealing a narrow patch of skin. My gaze clung to that spot as if it was the most delicious thing in the world. And maybe it was.
 

I removed the pan with bacon from the hot plate of my stove and walked to the table, where Lisbeth was already arranging the eggs on the second plate, leaving some space for the bacon.
 

“Do you care for a few slices of bacon? If so,
please
move your fork off the plate.
Thank
you,” I said mockingly.

She didn’t miss a beat. “Much better.”

I rolled my eyes at her.
 

“Adorable,” she said, looking at me.
 

“Adorable?”

“Yes. Men who aren’t afraid to roll their eyes are totally adorable. Rolling eyes is more of the women’s domain.”

And just like that she totally messed with my manhood and me. She made me say ‘please’ and ‘thank you’, with just one short comment. And then she called me freakin’
adorable
, because I did what was a
woman’s thing
to do. Great, just great.
 

I knew exactly what I wanted to do with her now—I wanted to put her across my knee and spank that shapely butt of hers. Hard, leaving red handprints on it, branding her to be mine. I regretted not having my sex toys in the cabin, but what would be the point? I’ve never invited any women here. This was my solitude, my escape, and so all the fun items were back at my house. But if I could only have my flogger or one of the black leather riding crops…

That thought made me smile. It wasn’t a pretty smile, but she took it for something else entirely, because she said with a definite appreciation in her voice, “See? It wasn’t so hard, was it now?”

I would like to show you
hard
. In so many ways.
 

“Let’s eat. I’m starving.” I pulled the chair and sat down.
 

She stood with her hands on her hips, eyebrows elevated.
 

“
Please,”
I added derisively.
 

This time
she
rolled her eyes, and I grinned through the mouthful of eggs. I’ve never had so much fun with a woman. Except for Chris, but she was a completely different story, being homosexual and my best female friend.
 

Lisbeth slowly shook her head.
 

“What?” I asked, while biting on a piece of bacon.
 

“Nothing.” Lisbeth made an innocent face.
 

I squinted at her skeptically.
 

She sighed and chuckled. “Nothing. It’s okay. I’ve never spent a lot of time around guys, so…”

“So?” I prompted.
 

There was another sigh. She put her fork down and pushed her hair behind her ear. “Well, you’re such a… a…
guy
.”
 

I almost choked on my food. “What did you expect?”

“No, it’s not that.” She laughed nervously. “Just… I’ve never spent much time around men. I guess, I’m not used to… ah, let’s just drop it.”

I laughed. “Okay, I promise not to burp loudly or fart or any of such. If that’s what you mean.”

She went completely red in the face. That made me chuckle again. Wow, I couldn’t recall ever meeting a girl like this one. It was actually very refreshing.
 

“Okay?” I asked.
 

She shrugged, smiling shyly.
 

I reclined in my chair and, tilting my head to one side watched her. That made her act even more uncomfortable. I motioned to her coffee mug and asked, “I’m getting more. Do you want a refill?”
 

“Sure, thank you.”

“You bet. No, wait—
you’re welcome
.”

“You’re just making fun of me,” she complained while getting milk jug out from the fridge.
 

“How would I even dare?” I poured the fragrant, dark liquid into her cup, and then some into mine as well. So,” I changed the subject, “there are some cool hikes in this area. Let’s get going soon. Have you ever hiked before?”

“I sure have. I enjoy the outdoors. Let me change into some long pants and put my boots on. I wouldn’t want to pick any ticks on the way.”

I nodded with approval. Smart thinking. Ticks were a nasty business.
 

About half hour later, we were on a rather easy, short hike. I chose one of the simplest hikes, not knowing the level of Lisbeth’s fitness. While hiking by myself or with any of my brothers, I would, most likely, chose a more demanding trail. But this time, I took my companion to a near-by, flat walk that wound close to the Devil’s Lake.
 

Lisbeth kept glancing to the sides and taking in the surrounding area, her eyes wide-opened in awe. The scenery was beautiful: the Lake, the thicket of the greenery, the cloudless sky. The air was warm but still felt refreshing.
 

I took a deep lungful and asked, “What do you think? Is this okay?”

Her eyes smiled. Her whole face smiled! “Are you kidding? What a fantastic place. I love it!”

That was uplifting. I couldn’t remember any woman I knew to be so upbeat about the outdoors.
 

“A couple of miles down this way,” I pointed to our left, “is a great climbing wall. People come from all over the area to climb it, no matter the season.”

“Do you rock climb?” she asked.
 

“Yeah. All of us do. I mean my brothers and cousins. Have you ever tried?”

“No. I don’t think I could. I’m really afraid of heights.”

I nodded. Many people were scared of heights, and there wasn’t much to do about that.

“This view is breathtaking.” Lisbeth put her hand on the trunk of a large oak tree, looking down at the Lake.

It sure was. Every time I went hiking near the Devil’s Lake, I felt as if seeing the beauty of this place from a new, never-before-discovered angle.
 

We continued on, when Lisbeth slipped on a patch of mud, hidden under a layer of leaves. She squealed as she started to fall, arms flailing. I tried to grasp her quickly around her waist, but she slid down and my hands closed over her breasts. Fuck, just what I needed to keep myself in check. But at least I saved her from falling.
 

I moved my hands away in a hurry, as if she burned me. In a sense, she did. “Sorry, I didn’t want you to fall and hurt yourself. Are you okay?”

Mortified, she kept her eyes cast down. She gulped and said, “Uoh, that was close. Thanks for catching me. How embarrassing.”
 

“Nothing to be embarrassed about.” I playfully nudged her, hoping to lighten the mood. But damn, she had some nice, full breasts.
One more thing to keep me up at night
, I though, not at all upset about it. “Next time warn me, so I can be prepared.”