The Beard Made Me Do It (The Dixie Warden Rejects Book 5) Read online

  “Gonna run away every time the going gets rough?” came that annoying, amused voice.

  I picked up a rock and chucked it in the direction of the vacant lot behind the bar that the Dixie Wardens had taken over for the night.

  “What’s it to you?” I asked, bending down for another rock.

  The man at my back took advantage of my position and slapped his work-roughened palm against my ass.

  Crack.

  I yelped and spun around, indignation filling my features, and glared.

  “What the fuck?”

  He shrugged.

  “You don’t want me to smack it, then don’t bend over in front of me,” he challenged.

  “So, that’s just…what the fuck, Jessie?” I might or might not have screeched that, but dammit! I was just so damn upset!

  Why did he have to talk to me like the past fourteen years didn’t happen? Like he didn’t break my heart when he’d promised he would keep it safe?

  His grin was that same grin that always used to make me weak in the knees. Though, now it was even better. Or maybe I was older and my knees were starting to give out.

  Either way, having him give me that look—the one that promised me sweet ecstasy—was enough to get me to put some distance between us that I knew needed to be there.

  Or, I would have if he didn’t catch me around the waist, refusing to allow me that distance I had when I started to step away from him.

  “Jessie,” I planted my hands onto his chest and pushed with all my might, but he didn’t budge. I was still planted firmly in one of his arms.

  “How about we hash this shit out,” he said while the saddest song, Sweet Home Alabama, played on the outdoor speakers.

  Jesus, didn’t they realize that people came outside to get the fuck away from the noise?

  “We’re not hashing anything out,” I denied. “There is nothing TO hash out.”

  He squeezed me impossibly closer, and dropped his mouth until he was practically breathing against my lips.

  His beard was tickling my skin and making my fingers ache to stretch up and snatch him to me. But that would be bad.

  Bad, bad, bad.

  “I’ve missed you every day for fourteen years.”

  My eyes closed.

  “I’ve wanted to wrap you up in my arms like this, feel you against my body, every single night since I was stupid enough to leave.”

  I whimpered.

  “I wanted to see you barefoot in our kitchen, raising our babies.”

  My breath hitched.

  “I wanted to see you walk across that stage to get your MD.”

  A tear slipped down my cheek.

  “I wanted to be your first patient. But not at an actual hospital. In our bed. With you on top of me. Making sure I was healthy for you.”

  I gasped in a breath.

  “But most of all, I wanted to talk to you. To share my laughter and my life. I wanted you to hug me and kiss me at random times. I wanted you back so bad that my heart hasn’t stopped hurting for fourteen. Fucking. Years.”

  Sit still, Ellen. He’ll let you go. Do not kiss him. Do not kiss him.

  Shit.

  I kissed him.

  My lips touched his.

  I lost control.

  I threw my arms around his shoulders and pulled him closer to me. And I kissed him like the last fourteen years hadn’t happened. Like I was his. Like tomorrow would never come.

  The second my mouth touched down on his, he opened for me, allowed my tongue entrance, and gave back everything I had to give and more.

  “I’ve missed you,” he gasped out, then took control.

  And by control, I mean total and complete control.

  He picked me up, forced my legs around his slim hips, and walked us deeper into the shadows. I felt something hard at my back moments later, and then he pushed his entire body weight into me, allowing me to feel for the first time in a very long, long time exactly what I did to him.

  “Goddammit,” he growled. “I’ve wanted this exact same scenario for years.

  Yet, here I am, between your legs once again, without protection.”

  I froze.

  I knew just as well as he did where this was going. Knew where we were headed. Had known the moment I fell asleep crying in his arms that, eventually, we would get back here.

  I’d fought it. Would continue to fight it…later.

  I wanted him. I wanted this. I wanted to escape.

  “You’re saying you’ve been bad these last fourteen years and don’t deserve to be inside of me unprotected?” I asked him.

  The words were said in such a way that showed my disappointment.

  Maybe he had been bad.

  Hell, it was likely he had been.

  I hadn’t. I hadn’t slept with but two men since him, and each of those times had been with protection. Nobody ever had me unprotected.

  Why? Because that was for one man, and one man only.

  The man currently pinning me against the wall.

  My breathing was ragged. My breasts were heavy and aching. And we wouldn’t even say what my vagina was doing.

  If that particular part of my body could speak, the entire bar would’ve known how much I wanted him the moment I’d spotted him in the bar.

  “No, that’s not what I’m saying,” he said. “I’m saying that I don’t have any condoms.”

  My hopes fell.

  He didn’t want to do it without the condoms. And I couldn’t blame him.

  In this day and age, you couldn’t be too careful.

  “But if you’re saying that it’s okay to go without, then honey, I’m accepting. Because I’ve never not once not used protection with anyone but you.”

  And then he was shoving my dress up and sucking on my nipple.

  The cold December air hit my exposed skin, and the dual sensations of Jessie’s hot mouth and the cold bricks and air on other parts of my body were enough to send me flying.

  I clung to his hair as my orgasm rocketed through me like a shot. I rode the ridge of his cock, ground myself into him, thankful that I’d worn my leggings so I could feel him better.

  “Always were quick to shoot off,” he growled, then the pressure on my back decreased. But only long enough for him to slip that devilish hand down the back of my leggings, past my panties, and straight to my pussy.

  He growled when he felt the wetness.

  And I growled when he pulled away.

  “What are you doing?” I cried out as he stepped away from me.

  I heard his belt click in the darkness, and my over sensitized brain started to realize that he wasn’t leaving. He was just stripping so that our proceedings could move forward to the next logical step.

  So, to help him, I bent down and removed my leggings and panties, again thankful that I’d worn them under my dress tonight.

  Before I could even straighten, he was back, and I felt the solid heat of him at my entrance.

  Our eyes met in the near darkness, and he pushed inside so roughly that I cried out. But it was okay, because he was there to catch the cry with his mouth.

  “You feel like my dreams,” he whispered gruffly.

  “You feel like you’re filling me full,” I whispered. “And you’re everything that I remembered.”

  He was, too.

  He was so big that there wasn’t a single inch of me that wasn’t filled to the brim.

  He felt like he kept going and going, too.

  When he finally came to a halt inside of me, sheathed completely, I gasped out at the feeling of such fullness.

  No longer did I notice the cold. No longer did I care that we were outside, only a few feet away from where people were passing us to walk to their cars at the side lot.

  Though, they’d really have to look to see us thanks to the darkness of the shadows that crept around the building.

  I could do nothing but hold o
n as he started to move. Slowly, at first, as he felt like he was trying to savor the moment.

  But then it turned into a fast and furious pace that neither one of us was able to control.

  I slammed my mouth down onto his as he bucked his hips, pushing his hard cock into me faster than I could catch my breath.

  My legs burned from holding them around his hips, but he must’ve realized because he readjusted us so that he had control of one leg.

  “Drop the other to the ground. Put your foot on top of my boot so you don’t have to touch the dirty ground.”

  I did as he instructed, and the awkward stretch with one leg up high and the air, and the other one touching the top of his boot, was forgotten the moment he started to move again.

  The new angle had him dragging the fat tip of his cock against the sensitive skin of my pussy.

  It took less than thirty seconds of him filling me, more slowly this time so as not to knock me off balance, to realize I wouldn’t last very long with him like this.

  And when his hands went back to my ass to tilt it up further, I exploded.

  Stars burst behind my eyelids, and my body bowed toward his.

  A scream caught in my throat, and before it could be released, his mouth found mine again.

  My pussy rippled, drawing a strangled moan from his lips as he, too, came.

  Hot spurts started to pulse inside of me as he came. My pussy milked his length, coaxing every last drop of essence he had left inside of him.

  It felt like he came forever, but then again, I was damn near multi-orgasmic by the time he was finished, too.

  “Goddamn.”

  I hummed in agreement.

  He let go of my leg, and I dropped it to his other booted foot.

  “Now what?” I asked breathlessly, loving the way his cock stayed buried in my sex, my pussy lips wrapping around part of his length.

  “Now,” he said, sounding reluctant. “I pull out.”

  I whimpered, but didn’t protest as he did, only wished quietly that he hadn’t.

  But then a car door slammed, and a couple of giggling women passed two car lengths away from us, making me realize what I’d just done.

  “I haven’t done it outside since…you know.”

  His chuckle was knowing.

  “Since I fucked you on the field inside of the soccer goal?” he squeezed my ass before patting it twice.

  I nodded. “Yeah.”

  His release started to roll down my leg, and I bit my lip, wondering what I was going to do.

  He saved the day, though, by pulling a handful of bar napkins out of his pocket and handing them to me.

  “Plan ahead much?” I raised a brow at him.

  It was so dark, though, that the effect was lost on him.

  “Can’t say that I hadn’t hoped for it,” he agreed, placing me onto the tops of my boots by picking me up. “Though, I’d planned to take you to my truck.”

  I used the bar napkins to clean up as best as I could, and took the proffered panties and leggings he handed to me.

  Once I’d slipped both on, he helped me into my boots before offering me his hand.

  I took it and stared at him, not admitting that I didn’t want to go back to reality. I wanted to stay in the dark shadows and be happy for a few more minutes.

  Be blissful for just a little more time.

  “Hey, pretty girl.”

  My eyes snapped up to catch his.

  “I missed you,” he whispered.

  A tear slipped out of my eye.

  “Please don’t leave me again.”

  Jessie’s eyes closed at my words.

  “Never.”

  If only I could believe him.

  Chapter 12

  The word ‘fuck’ is a form of meditation. The more you say it, the more your throat chakra clears.

  -True shit

  Jessie

  She was ignoring me again.

  I glared at her back as she walked out of her shop, and I wondered if it would be inappropriate to snatch her up off the street and throw her on the back of my bike.

  “Dad,” I heard my son call.

  I looked up, startled to see him standing next to me.

  “What?” I asked distractedly.

  “Mom’s standing over there. We were calling your name for like two minutes but you’re so spaced out that you can’t even hear us. What’s going on?”

  I finally peeled my eyes away from where Ellen was taking boxes out of the back of a moving truck and bringing them into her shop.

  What the hell was she doing?

  “Margot,” I said congenially, even though there was nothing more in the world that I didn’t want to do than talk to my ex-girlfriend who was still, obviously, a drug addict if the needle marks on her arms were anything to go by.

  Disgust rolled through me, but I tried not to let it show.

  My son was watching me closely, gauging my reaction, as was Margot. It was obvious she enjoyed the fact that she’d snuck up on me.

  And that I was having to see her at all.

  I’d been doing a bang up job at ignoring her and avoiding her when she spent time with Linc.

  It was something I couldn’t fucking stand, but since, by law, I had to allow her visitation, there was nothing that I could do without taking her to court. And then they’d allow Linc to make the decision on whether or not he wanted to see her or not, but at this point, I knew he wasn’t fully convinced that she was all that bad.

  But all we needed was time. Margot would fuck it up somehow.

  I knew it. She knew it. Hell, even Linc knew it.

  “Hello, Jessie,” Margot drawled. “I’ve missed seeing you these last few weeks.”

  I surely doubted it.

  We actually hated each other.

  If there was ever a wrong person on this planet to have had a baby with sixteen years ago, having it with this woman was the worst possible choice.

  The evil glint in her eyes only helped hammer that point home.

  “How was dinner?” I asked my son, ignoring Margot’s snide comment.

  “It was okay,” he said. “The place we were going to go to was packed because of the burger special they have every week, so we decided to go somewhere else. It wasn’t Pickle’s, though.”

  What I was able to deduce from that statement was that Margot had done something last week to warrant them not going back this week. Because it didn’t matter how long the line was. I’d go to Pickle’s and stand in line for over an hour if it got me one of their burgers.

  “Interesting,” I murmured. “Headed home?”

  It was a school night, after all. And tomorrow was the last practice before the games started. Usually, that meant Linc would be in bed by ten, because he had to be at school by six in the morning for practice before school.

  I could tell by Linc’s face, though, that they weren’t headed home.

  At least not yet.

  “No, we’re going to go to a movie.”

  My brows rose. “Is that wise?”

  Margot’s face twisted in anger.

  “Yes, it’s necessary. Since he’s not going to be available on Saturday, we’re spending a little extra time together today.”

  I wanted to laugh at the venom in Margot’s voice, but I knew it wouldn’t be the best idea.

  She was already on edge, waiting for me to say something negative to her.

  I wouldn’t be doing that.

  Not tonight, and not in front of my son.

  “Yeah, that’s fine,” I said. “But I would think you’d want to go to bed since you have to be up at five to get to school by six.”

  Margot’s eyes narrowed.

  “It’ll be fine,” Linc lied.

  My lips kicked up in a sardonic smile.

  “That’s what you said when you stayed out late with friends the night before your last practice. When you were late getting the
re, the coach made you run two miles.”

  Linc’s face twisted at that memory.

  “I threw up all over the ten yard line,” he grinned. “We’re not staying out too late. I’ll be home by ten thirty if we go now.”

  Linc started toward his car, but Margot stayed.

  “You won’t win, you know.”

  My brows rose at her words.

  “I won’t win what?” I questioned.

  “You won’t win in turning him against me. I’m his mama. Mamas always win,” she snapped. “He’ll treat me like a queen once he goes big.”

  I didn’t call her a liar like I wanted to.

  I would’ve, however, addressed her misconceptions that she thought I would allow her to ride our son’s purse strings, but Ellen finally deigned to notice that I was sitting on my bike outside her door.

  “Are you ever going to come in here, Jessie?” Ellen asked from behind me. “I feel like you’re watching my every move and it’s uncomfortable.”

  My eyes left Margot’s to settle on Ellen, who was watching me with what was akin to worry.

  Shit.

  She recognized Margot. She had to.

  She hadn’t changed that much, body wise, her face, however, looked like she was well beyond her thirty-two years of age. If I had my guess, I would say she looked to be near fifty years of age with all the lines, wear and tear.

  “Yeah,” I said. “Be right in.”

  I turned my eyes back to Margot to tell her goodbye, but the look in her eyes made me freeze.

  It was one I knew all too well. The Margot ‘I’m going to fuck with you’ look.

  “If it isn’t your little virgin bride. My, but you haven’t aged a year!” Margot called bawdily. “Oh, but Linc told me you were single and that you have been for the last fourteen years. Is that because of little ol’ me?”

  My gut tightened.

  Ellen’s face, equally, showed her anger.

  “Margot. Long time no see!” Ellen said sarcastically. “My, but you’ve aged well.”

  That was a lie.

  Even I could tell that Margot wasn’t nearly as pretty as she used to be. Hell, even her clothes were trash compared to the riches she used to wear.

  I got up off my bike and pocketed the keys before heading in Ellen’s direction.

  I read Ellen’s face as I walked, and knew when Margot was about to do something.