AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Mack exhaled a long, loud breath while pulling up his pants. I was about to sit up and ask him to take me to a hotel because I felt like I didn’t want to spend another moment with him, until he started speaking.
“I received this house as payment for a debt that was owed to me.”
“What kind of debt?”
“Somebody who owed me a lot of money for a shipment he was supposed to keep track of, but it was stolen before he could deliver it to me.” My breath caught. What could someone owe him that was worth the cost of an entire house?
“What kind of shipment?” I asked hesitantly.
Mack growled. “Jonna, don’t make me tell you. Please.”
I turned my back to him and he immediately wrapped himself around me.
“Parts. A lot of expensive car parts.”
“No kidding.” I snorted and hugged the pillow closer to my chest. “They must have been quite expensive in order for this house to be offered up as compensation.”
“Look, I’ve done a lot of shit I’m not proud of, but I’m trying like hell to get it all behind me.”
“So in the meantime, you kick someone out of their home? Yep, that sounds like something a person on the up-and-up would do.” I scoffed, and Mack let out another long breath.
“When I was handed the deed to this house, I took it because I knew it didn’t really mean anything to the guy. He flips houses as a way to make money when he’s not doing jobs for me. When I saw this place, I don’t know, something about it drew me in. I decided to keep it instead of selling like I’d first planned.” I couldn’t disagree with him. It was a great house, however, the reason he acquired it didn’t sit well with me.
“Mack, what you’re doing is dangerous.”
“I know. There was a time in my life where I didn’t have a choice. My father was a piece of shit drunk who could never keep a job and my mother couldn’t seem to stand up for herself and leave him. She worked two jobs and was hardly ever around, so my brother and I pretty much raised ourselves.” My heart ached for him. I was lucky to have such a loving and supportive family, sometimes I forgot that not everyone was as fortunate as me. I felt like such a brat for not always appreciating it.
“My brother and I figured out pretty early how to hustle suckers into racing us for money. At first it was just to help keep the lights on in the house and food on the table. We’d find our marks at gas stations, auto parts stores, or sometimes car shows. After a while, it wasn’t hard to hustle people out of all kinds of other things, too. It was cool at first, we had so much money we couldn’t spend it all, but we got greedy and started getting involved in things that reached much deeper than we realized. Now, we’ve got all kinds of heat on us. This is why we need to back away before one or both of us gets locked up for a long time.”
I twisted in his arms to face him. I thought I would feel better if he’d opened up to me, but all it did was make me worry even more.
“Jonna, I’m doing my best to get my shit together. You asked if I still lived in both places, and the answer is no. I don’t go to the Charleston house much anymore. It was my parents’ house, and I’ve always hated that place. I plan to get it sold as soon as I can. Sorry I upset you. I’m so used to always being on guard that my first instinct is to evade.”
I had so many questions I wanted to ask, yet I was terrified to know the answers to them. I was way out of my league, but at the same time I couldn’t make myself leave this bed. The way his body felt next to me seemed worth all of the uncertainty. It was like being surrounded in quicksand. The more my heart struggled to flee, the deeper it settled in.
“Thank you, Mack, for sharing that with me.”
“You’re not just some girl I fuck, Jonna. I’ll do better.” I nodded, feeling a little choked up by his words. I touched my lips to his, and he winced. That’s when I saw the slight swelling of his bottom lip and tiny red teeth marks. I gasped and sat up on my elbow to look at his mouth.
“I’m sorry.” I lowered my face and lightly kissed each nick. Mack shrugged.
“Aside from that part, the rest was kind of hot.” He laughed lightly, but then his expression grew serious. “We didn’t use anything.” My eyes went wide with shock. He was right. I’d gotten caught up in the heat of the moment and I’d forgotten about that part.
“I’m on the pill and I’m clean,” I said, and Mack nodded.
“I’m clean, too. I get checked regularly, plus I’ve never done it before without protection.” He brushed curls away from my face, and I felt my body relax.
“Okay.” I smiled at him and lowered my head to rest on his shoulder.
“Okay.” He wrapped me tightly in his arms. “Are you always like that when you’re angry? I have to remember to piss you off more.”
I slapped his stomach, and he coughed out a laugh. “Don’t you dare, Mack King.”
“Oh, baby, you’d be surprised at the things I’d dare to do.” Before I could reply, he rolled me over and was covering my mouth with his. Anything else I’d wanted to say was forgotten.
Chapter Twelve
I woke the next morning alone in Mack’s huge bed. There were no curtains covering the large windows, and bright sunlight filled the room. I sat up and rubbed my eyes before sliding out of bed. On the way to the bathroom, I stopped to admire the breathtaking view outside. The blue water sparkled in the distance while the trees swayed in the morning breeze. A large black iron gate surrounded the perimeter of Mack’s property and separated his backyard from several feet of tall grass and sand that led to water. There was a wooden dock, and anchored to it was a cabin cruiser. Not only did he have two houses, but also a boat? Unease settled in the pit of my stomach.
