Turn & Burn (38 page)

An hour later, we’d just finalized the clip I wanted to upload, when a tiny tornado rushed into the room.

“Uncle Caine!”

He gave the child a warm smile. “Hang on, wild thang. Let me get this uploaded for Shelby before you climb me like a tree.”

“This is a hospital. You have to use your inside voice.” Caroline reached for the child’s hand, but my friend’s eyes were on Caine. The look disappeared in a split second, but I spied the longing in her eyes.

“I’ll do it later. Hand me the laptop, Caine.”

“You sure?” At my nod, he slid the device onto the tray. Grabbing little Shelby under the arms, he lifted her over his head. The child squealed. Caine lowered her until their noses touched. My heart twisted.

“Bad influence.” Caroline smacked his shoulder, but her cheeks turned rosy and her soft smile told me she’d lied at the fairgrounds. I’d die before I took anything else from her.

Jerking my attention to little Shelby, I watched Caine turn the child and plop her onto his lap, sheltering her under one big arm. I blinked back sudden tears, but the sight steeled my resolve.

“Did Santy Claws bring you them fancy boots?”

“No, she gave ‘em to me.” The child pointed in my direction. “Hey, what’s that?”

“My cast. Uncle Colt told the doctor to make it look like this. Caroline, there’s a marker in my purse. Let her sign it.”

“You, uh, know she can’t write yet.” Caroline giggled.

“I don’t care.”

“I want one!” My namesake kicked her feet, driving the heels of her red boots into Caine’s shin.

“Keep yelling, then.” Caroline scowled, but leaned across Caine to grab my pocketbook. I pretended to eye the laptop, but caught the caressing gaze he raked across her ass when she bent to grab my pocketbook.

They belong together.

D
ale paced at the foot of my bed.
Mom’s new bed. Whatever.

“Shelby, what’re you doin’? You just got released from the hospital. Your mama and I want to baby you some.”

“No babying allowed. I’m ready to go. I have my prescription. I have an appointment with a doctor in Spartanburg. I’m fine.” I scanned the room to be sure I had everything.

“Shelby, goddammit, your mama’s gonna have a cow. She’ll be back from gettin’ her hair done in an hour.” Dale scowled. “Why not stay with us till school starts back? That’s just eleven more days. Damn house echoes, it’s so empty.”

I shoved the last pair of tights into the bag and yanked the zipper.

“Which one done it this time? Whose ass do I need to yank a knot in?”

I sank onto the edge of the bed. “Neither. Or both. Depends on your point of view.” I lifted my eyes to his troubled face. “You know better than me how this story ends, right?”

Comprehension flickered in his eyes. He dropped his gaze to the footboard. “I’ll get the truck warmed up, but you gotta stick around to say goodbye to your mama.”

My cell phone buzzed. I lifted it off the bed and scanned the message before turning my gaze to his. “Not necessary. Robert’s here to pick me up.”

“Who?”

“My boyfriend. Well, we broke up before I arrived, but I’m going to fix that. He’s from Rock Hill. Goes to Wofford.”

Dale, God bless his ass, grabbed my bag and stopped arguing. I followed him down the stairs. To my right, Caine looked up from the tiny table when I followed Dale into the elegant new kitchen. A thick book lay open in front of him. He waved his cell phone with a scowl.

“So far, four of these goddamn parts are backordered. Fucking imports. So, I can’t say how long it’ll take to get your Audi fixed up.”

“I can’t drive for eight to twelve weeks. I don’t need a car.”

The doorbell chimed.

“That’s him now.” I spun, hurrying to the elegant foyer.

Robert lifted his eyes from the slate tiled porch with a smile. His khakis had a sharp crease and the scent of heavy starch rolled off his shirt. I eyed the little polo horse while I took a mental deep breath and forced a smile.

“Hey. Damn, that’s... bright.” He gestured to my neon purple cast.

“One of my stepbrothers missed his calling as a comedian. In my defense, I was drugged to the gills when this happened.” I hesitated. “Let me grab my suitcase. I’ll meet you at the car.”

His light brows rose. “Aren’t you going to introduce me to your parents?”

“My mom’s gone to get her hair done. Only the guys are here. Let’s just go. Please.”

“Shelby. This is rude.”

Heart sinking, I stepped back to let him in. He eyed the thick crown molding, nodding with approval and then gave the Oriental rug under our feet a quick smile.

Colt peered around the open refrigerator door when we stepped into the kitchen. His brows drew together. Caine tipped the chair back, hooking bare feet around the slender legs. Exchanging a glance with Colt, he turned back toward me with a slight frown.

Dale broke the silence before I could sort out which name I was supposed to use first to make a proper introduction. Dale’s? The visitor? I couldn’t recall.

“I’m Dale. Nice to meet’cha.” He crossed the room to shake Robert’s hand.

“Nice meeting you at last, Mr. Hannah. I’m Robert Kossell. Did y’all have a nice Christmas?”

Caine’s glower made me hold my breath. “Well, we did kick some ass on the drag strip. Who the hell are you?”

Dale breeched the shocked silence by clearing his throat. “Uh, what my son means is, how long you and Shelby been knowin’ each other?”

Robert cut me a look, but offered Dale a smile. “We’ve been dating since last spring. I think I scared her by proposing out of the blue, but rest assured, Mr. Hannah, I won’t stop till I get that ring on her finger. I plan to make an honest woman out of her, sir.”

Colt slammed the refrigerator door. The items inside rattled loudly in the quiet room. Spinning he stalked out of the kitchen. I knew he’d gone to peer through the living room windows when he returned in half a minute. “Beamer, huh? That model comes with an optional five-speed, don’t it?”

“It’s uh, automatic.”

Colt raked his hand down his bare abs and took the wide stance I’d grown to know all too well. “Why the fuck would you cough up the extra bucks for German engineering and then get an automatic tranny?”

Caine fastened his eyes on my face. I couldn’t stop the sweep of heat over my cheeks, but I studied the lines of grey grout, feeling like slime.

While Robert stammered, Caine slammed the front legs of his chair onto the tile. “Let me grab that bag for you, little sister.” I winced at the ear-piercing shriek the chair legs made, grating against the ceramic tile. He vaulted to his feet. The chair slammed into the new wallpaper. “I know how bad you always wanna get on the road.” He crossed to the case in two long strides, hefting the bag off the floor.

Robert reached for the suitcase, but Caine’s flashing eyes made him drop his hand.

Dale gave me a hug, backed by a puzzled look. Colt crossed his arms over his chest and raised his chin. “Later.”

I slid my hand into Robert’s.

“I uh, wanted to leave Dad’s card for y’all. I know your job’s a dangerous one, Mr. Hannah. If you ever—God forbid—have need of his services, there’d be a family discount.” Dale took the card Robert produced from his shirt pocket and scanned the small print. I died a little inside. “Or, maybe one of your friends might need him, so feel free to pass it along.”

Tugging his hand, I interrupted. “We better get going. See y’all later.” Letting Robert’s hand go, I flung myself at Dale, wrapping my good arm around his neck. “I love you.”

“Love you, too, kiddo.” He squeezed me so tight, tears ran down my cheeks.

In the driveway, Caine punched the button and raised the trunk lid. He hurled my suitcase into the void. Slamming the lid, he leaned on it for a moment, eying me as Robert led me to the passenger side.

I wanted to look away from his intent stare, but his eyes drew mine anyway. His jaw worked as if he held a mouthful of tacks. Just the way his father’s did.

Blinking back tears, I slid inside the BMW and fumbled for the safety belt. Caine didn’t wave or wait for us to back out of the drive. He sauntered down the walkway. I watched until the front door slammed behind him.

The lump in my throat refused to go down, no matter how many times I swallowed.

Leaning back, I closed my eyes, listening to the directions given by Robert’s GPS system. I responded to direct questions, but mostly held my breath until I opened my eyes to see the green and white roadside sign.

Leaving Cabarrus County. Home of nine-time NASCAR champion Jesse Hancock.

THE END...FOR NOW

E
den Connor graduated from Converse College with a degree in Psychology so long ago, her sheepskin is chiseled in stone. She's been a graphic artist, a bridal photographer and an antique restorer. Since the death of her true love, she raised two children to adulthood and now has the time to return to writing. She writes primarily contemporary erotic romances, along with the odd bit of erotica. Most of her writing is set where she lives, in South Carolina, so expect the handsome stranger to come equipped with a slow drawl. Addicted to hazelnut creamer, baseball and cranberry glass, she likes the music of Motown and when not writing about adults behaving badly, she takes a stab at the occasional needlepoint canvas.

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From the Files of Banger and Lever

Come, They Told Me ~ Book 1 (Free on iTunes, Barnes & Noble, Amazon)

January (Book 2)

Those Devilish De Marco Men

Soft Sounds of Pleasure ~Book One (Free on iTunes, Barnes & Noble, Amazon)

Wildly Inappropriate ~ Book 2

Incidental Contact ~ Book 3

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The Carmine Club Chronicles

Breaking Glass

Forceful Negotiations

Rain on Me

TuDawgs

The ‘Cuda Confessions

Gas or Ass

Turn & Burn

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Deleted scenes:

My editor’s job is to tell it like it is.

So, when she got her hands on the draft of Turn & Burn, she encouraged me to axe what was then Chapter One completely. I did that. She’s my editor because I trust her judgment. But, if you’re one of those incredible people who relates to this series in an intimate way, and just can’t get enough,
you may read that original chapter here on my blog
.

Many thanks,

~E

Did you love
Turn and Burn
? Then you should read
Rain On Me
by Eden Connor!

If every heart’s a package someone else has tied in knots, how did bondage unravel mine?

I’d sleep with the devil to nail the source of illegal poker machines pouring into my district. It’s personal between me and those one-armed bandits, but when my captain asked me to go undercover as a sexual submissive to catch our suspect, my gut said “Hell, no, even I can’t tell a lie that big.”

Enter Ray Casey, shibari master, who spent two weeks showing me the world of erotic bondage. I fell hard for Ray, but the outcome of our affair was preordained; duty above all.
When the unthinkable happened, where could I turn when I couldn’t trust my brothers in blue? My instincts lead me back to Ray, but he wants me to submit to something harder than a little BDS&M….

~Zinnia J. Jackson, Det. 1st Grade, South Carolina Law Enforcement Division