(One Month Later)LainaI buried my toes in the wet sand seconds before the wave rolled up the beach to engulf my ankles. The water was warm and crystal clear. I lifted my gaze to stare across the turquoise waters and out at the horizon. There wasn’t a thing in sight as far as the eye could see. Nothing but water and blue sky and sunshine. This was paradise. I wiggled my toes in the sand, feeling the grains nibble at my skin as they settled deeper. I smiled as I sank a little farther with each wave. Mason came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist. His chin pushed into my shoulder, and he kissed my cheek. “What are you thinking about?” I stared out at the horizon again. “How good life is.” He chuckled. I felt the rumble in his chest as he pressed up against my back. “Life is good. You’re right. And this view,” he said with a sigh, “this view is unlike anything I ever thought I’d be lucky enough to see.
Laina I moaned out of arousal and frustration. Then I decided to take matters into my own hands, and I rolled up to my knees. Mason tried to stop me, but I pushed him back firmly. He fell onto the sand and laughed as I swung a leg over him and straddled his hips. “Do you have a condom?” I asked. He reached in his swimsuit pocket and pulled one out. I plucked it out of his fingers and shook my head. “How are you always prepared?” “Well, I always want to fuck you. So I have to be.” With the heat of a blush on my cheeks, I began undoing his drawstring. It took seconds. I pulled his trunks open and freed his cock to stroke him gently. He watched me and gripped my thighs firmly as I rolled the condom on.He pulled me up, and I lifted off him only to sit back down onto his dick. I was so fucking wet, he slid inside me easily. I moaned as I took all of him and put my hands flat on his chest to brace myself when my knees sank into th
Book TwoBenjiThe numbers weren’t adding up.I slumped back in my old office chair, which creaked beneath me and bent a little too far backward, and pinched the bridge of my nose.No matter how I tried to crunch them, shift them, or re-allocate them, there just wasn’t enough in my account to cover the operating costs of the shelter for the next quarter. Things were going to be very tight from July through September, and I was going to have a crew of very unhappy teenagers on my hands.The summer months were the ones the kids looked forward to the most. All of a sudden all the activities weren’t reduced to only being indoors. They had free reign of the yard out back where, admittedly, there was still a lot of work to be done, but where they were free to split into small groups or sit in solitude in the shade with one of the books from the library I’d built last year. The shelter had some connections to local libraries and used book stores that often donated some of their duplicates to
BenjiLou’s Late Night Cafe sat on the corner of the block three streets down from my shelter. Its red roof sparkled with droplets of rain in the spring sunshine that would disappear behind the high rise buildings all around in the next half hour or so. I let myself into the cafe and raked my fingers through my hair to slick it back. The rain had made it damp, so it sat in place as I squeezed between the tables crammed together to the booth at the back where I spotted my sister Laina.Across from her was her boyfriend Mason. He was also my best friend. Seeing them together, playing footsie under the table in a setting like this used to really grind my gears back when they first started running together. But as the time passed I saw how good Mason was for my baby sister. She needed someone like him. Someone to push her a bit.She was good for him, too. Mason was a bit of a hell raiser, what with his entire street racing history and what not. Somehow she calmed the storm that seemed to
CharlieI gripped the door frame to the red room and swung myself through the opening. My girls were all sitting in front of their individual vanities painting their faces. They were covered in sequins and feathers and whatever else their routines required.“Ladies,” I called, “half an hour to show time.”“Thanks, Charlie,” Monica said, as she shimmied between me and the door frame. Her long bare legs made short work of the red room floor—we preferred red instead of green like in theater—as she strode toward her vanity and took a seat. The fishnet stockings she had on were dotted with glittering crystals at every cross section. I’d been eyeing them for weeks considering buying myself a pair, but the good ones cost upward of a couple hundred dollars. The money she earned during her routines made purchases like that no big deal to her.Monica was my highest grossing dancer. She’d been stripping here at Ascension since I first started as a dancer. She and I had grown together in this pla
CharlieI had to stop talking to wait for the cheering and applauding to end. I understood the excitement of my team and I was as glad as any of them to never have to see that misogynistic ass hat again.Once they all were quiet, I continued. “I have a few housekeeping things to note as well. I’ve seen to fixing the fridge in the break room. The filtered water is now back up and running. Thank you Travis for using your handy HVAC skills to make that happen. Also, we now have a new selection of some premium liquors and an extra page of drinks in our specials menu, thanks to Janie for her creativity. If you’re looking for something strong and simple, try her Goose Ringer. It’s delicious but not for the faint of heart.”I paused to try and remember if there was anything else I needed to say. When I came up empty I flashed them my best smile. “I think that’s all for tonight, you guys. Once again thank you for showing up as your beautiful selves. I hope you all have the best night and make
BenjiRick’s house looked best at twilight. The warm glow from the lights inside gave it a welcoming feel and the garage door, which was wide open like a gaping mouth, seemed a bit less daunting at this hour when the sky was a pale blue and dusted with the first couple of stars that were bright enough to twinkle in the dim light.During the day the single story home was a bit rough around the edges. The peeling blue paint around the window casings and garage were obvious, as were all the oil stains on the old cracked driveway. One’s eye naturally pulled to the dead shrubs lining the driveway, and then to the grass, which reached halfway to my knees.Rick didn’t care about aesthetics. Especially not over the last year. He had his hands full with mechanical jobs like the one he was working on right now.He was bent over the hood of a ninety-one New Yorker—a hideous car even when in the best of conditions. The one his torso was lost under the hood of tonight was powder blue with a chrome
BenjiRick’s jaw flexed. “I’ll think about it.”“Well don’t think too long. The race is tomorrow. I’ve got to run. Thanks for the beer, man.”“Don’t mention it. See you around.”“See you tomorrow,” I said, knowing Rick wasn’t going to turn down the invite or the chance to be in the same vicinity as Harley Cross.I crossed the driveway once more and returned to my truck parked at the curb. I’d purchased the big black beast the same week the shelter opened. I needed something to haul big loads and pick up furniture. I was constantly bringing in new things and having a car was no longer practical. I missed the speed and handling to be sure, but I didn’t miss it more than I wanted my kids to have a safe place to stay.The stereo blasted rock music as I pulled away from the curb and headed home. It was nearing full dark now and all the street lights had flickered on. The dotted lines on the road disappeared on either side of the truck as I cut through traffic. The racer in me still had a h