Page 19 of Resisted
The gravel crunched below my feet, the sound an echo of my defiance. He would be mad, but he’d recover. With that thought, I followed the sound of talking and chattering to the back of the house, searching for the large group scattered about with drinks in hand. I found them easy enough.
“I can’t wait for her potato salad,” Boyce mumbled.
Margaret’s potato salad really was the fucking best. “I’ll eat it all before you get a single bite.” I wouldn’t, of course, but fucking with him was like second nature. It happened naturally. I did it without thinking.
Before Boyce had a chance to respond, Margaret’s voice filled the air. “Boys! I’ve missed you both.” She rushed toward us, her arms wide as she pulled us both into a hug at once. “I’ve forgotten how tall you boys are.”
Men. We were men. Hell, I’d been a man for so fucking long, I’d lost count of the years. Still, if Margaret wanted to pretend we were boys in exchange for feeding us, she could call me a boy all fucking day. “I promise, we’re the same height as the last time we came over.”
“And why has it been so long?” Her eyes narrowed like we were in trouble.
I held up my hands in defense. “Ask your son, we still don’t know.”
“Curious.” Her face pulled, and I suspected she knew good and well just what was keeping us away. “He’ll grow some balls one day.”
Boyce choked on the sip of beer he’d just swallowed. “Excuse me?”
“You heard me well enough. Silas will grow some balls and face facts someday. Until then, I’m just glad I could kidnap you two for a while.” She patted our backs. “Make yourself at home, you know how to find your way.”
She disappeared, squeezing between people on her way to meet a group of ladies drinking in the corner of the yard. It would be interesting to see her in a few hours, after all the alcohol had hit her system. We could drink and get a buzz, it just filtered through us a lot faster than a normal human. But the women… Whoa, did it hit them a bit differently before it wore off.
“Grub?” Boyce looked at me.
“Grub,” I confirmed.
We walked across the lawn toward the table of food. We were a little late and people had already dug in, but there was still plenty of grub to go around. I grabbed a paper plate, heading straight for the potato salad before Boyce even got a chance. If I let him go first, chances were there wouldn’t be any left for me to consume. He was a vacuum, a bottomless pit. Food could go into his mouth in an endless stream, and he’d never get full.
I left just enough for Boyce to have a serving before moving on to grab some fruit, salad, and a burger bun. I opened the bun, put on some mayo and mustard, added lettuce, tomatoes, and onions, then a substantial number of pickles. I was just about to reach for the last burger when a voice behind me made me freeze.
“Don’t you dare take the last burger, Vincent.”
I processed the words. “Who’s going to stop me, baby?”
Her voice got closer. “Me.”
I speared the burger with a fork and plopped it onto my plate. “Doubtful.”
“Damnit, Vincent,” she said on a growl. “Now I have to wait for the steaks to finish before they add more burgers to the grill.”
“It’s going to be a long wait then.” I flipped the burger closed, picked it up, and shoved a huge bite into my mouth as I turned to face her.
I nearly choked. A little over three fucking years since I’d seen Bella, and the time had been fucking kind as hell to her. I closed my eyes, trying to pretend like the sight of her hadn’t gotten me instantly hard. I’d never thought of her as more than just a girl. Never once had any sort of lust for her. But the second I saw her just now, it was instant, like the hard slam of a wall, one I shouldn’t even try to climb.
But those shorts… Those fucking shorts displayed miles of toned legs and thighs, and for a moment, the thought of those thighs wrapped around my head as she screamed my name had my knees nearly weakening. Tearing my gaze away from her legs did no good, because in the years since I’d last seen her, little Bella had somehow become a woman with all the enticing curves. Fuck, my mouth was dry. I couldn’t swallow. I could hardly breathe.
It wasn’t until she stopped in front of me that I became brave enough to open my eyes. She looked unimpressed, and I suddenly remembered that I had a fucking mouth full of food. I chewed slowly and swallowed hard. “Bella, I see nothing has changed.”
Everything had changed. Every-fucking-thing had changed.
“I could say the same about you. Still a fucking savage with no manners.”
“Language,” I said with a scowl, mainly out of habit. Fates knew I loved a good cuss word.
“I’m not five anymore, so you can’t tell me what to do,” she pointed out. She was right—I couldn’t. Somehow, I suspected now she could be the one telling me what to do and I would do it all willingly. “It’s been a long time, Vincent.”
“It has,” I confirmed. “Where have you been hiding?”
“I could ask you the same question.” Her eyes fell to Boyce. “Nice to see you, Boyce.”