Moth to a Flame Read online

  AFTER GETTING BACK from Dad’s yesterday, we spent the whole day sleeping and making love. Lia was becoming quite insatiable. Today, it was business as usual. She was at work and I was driving around, checking on my houses. Most of them were coming along just fine since we hadn’t really had any bad weather to stall the process.

  I finally made it to my own house, which I was building out by the lake, not far from Lia’s. Stepping out of the truck, I admired the structure. The house was full brick with a large front porch that stretched the width of the home. When I’d designed it, I’d wanted something unique and grand but not necessarily huge. Knowing that I wanted a family one day, though, I made sure there were several bedrooms.

  Now that I had Lia, the thought of having a family one day seemed a lot more real.

  I stepped inside to check the progress. Yesterday, they had finished the drywall and texture, prepping for paint later this week. It wouldn’t be long before I could move out of the duplex and into my dream home.

  Checking my watch, I realized that I needed to leave soon to pick Lia up for work. My plan was to swing by the party store and pick myself up a costume for the party Friday. I was still trying to figure out what I wanted to be. Lia wouldn’t tell me what she and Anj had bought. They had bought their costumes weeks ago. I was guessing that Anj and Deion had a pretty kick-ass Halloween party every year from the sound of it.

  When I arrived at the bank, she came bouncing out with a huge smile on her face. After jumping in the truck, she scooted over to me and gave me a kiss.

  “What are you so happy about?” I laughed at her mood.

  “I talked to my mom. She and Rich finally made it to a place with service. They’ve been unreachable for a few days. I’ve missed talking to her. She was very interested in hearing about you, Mr. Reeves,” she chattered happily.

  I smiled as she retold her conversation with her mother. Hand in hand, I drove and she excitedly told me all about her mom’s trip to Spain.

  “Where are we going?” she finally asked once she realized we had passed the street that led to my house.

  “It’s a surprise,” I told her mysteriously.

  Deep in thought, she sat quietly until we pulled up to the pumpkin patch. A huge grin stretched across her face. “We’re going to get pumpkins?”

  “Yep,” I winked as I got out of the truck.

  This time, I handed her the pink camo boots I’d bought her. Without so much as a peep about fashion faux pas, she slipped out of her heels and laced up the boots over her work slacks. We laughed at how ridiculous she looked.

  With our hands conjoined, we strolled through the pumpkin patch, trying to decide which pumpkin was the best. Letting go of my hand, she ran over to one that was damn near perfect with a tall stem attached.

  “I want this one,” she told me decisively, picking it up.

  “You got it, babe.” I reached down to pick up the abused pumpkin that was right next to where hers was.

  A confused expression passed over her face. “You aren’t going to look around for the perfect pumpkin? That one is kind of terrible-looking.”

  “Don’t you see? This is the perfect pumpkin. They each grew probably in separate fields and went through different hardships: bugs, weather, animals, etc. Once they reached maturity, fate placed them in the same place. These pumpkins stayed here, side by side, waiting for their happy ending. They were partners for the season. We can’t take one without the other. Don’t you think they deserve their happy ending together?” I asked her.

  She smiled shyly at me, not missing the hidden meaning, and nodded her head. “I think you’re right, Mr. Reeves,” she agreed and proceeded to carry her pumpkin to the checkout area.

  “Would you like your picture taken?” the woman asked us at the register.

  Lia nodded excitedly, leading me to the bale of hay. We posed for the picture, but just before they snapped the picture, I leaned in and kissed her cheek. The picture they handed us showed a very smitten man kissing a very happy woman. Lia smiled before tucking it away in her purse.

  When we arrived at my house, we got out and carried our pumpkins towards the door. Lia set hers down on the porch, prompting me to put mine right next to hers just like we found them at the pumpkin patch. She beamed at me as we walked inside. Lia found the photo album on the coffee table that Dad had given me the other day and plopped down on the couch to flip through it. I sat next to her and looked with her as she thumbed through the pages.

  “Oh my goodness, Cale! You were so cute!” The picture she was pointing at was one when I was about two. It was one of the happier family pictures we had. Dad had is arm around Mom while I was curled in her lap. We all were smiling happily for the picture. It always made me wonder how we’d gone from that to the way it had all turned out.

  She giggled at the pictures of me in my football uniforms throughout the years, cracking jokes here and there. When she flipped to the picture of me at my senior prom, she stopped to quietly stare at it for a few moments.

  I’d gone to prom with Madison. The smile that formed on my lips was automatic when I looked at the comparison of my nice tux compared to her completely over-the-top gothic dress. I was smiling at the camera whereas Madison was glaring. That girl had been too much. The only form of color on her was the corsage I’d bought her. She’d been pissed because I’d gotten one with yellow flowers. I’d figured the girl needed a little sunshine in her life, not to mention, black flowers were hard to fucking find.

  “Wow. You weren’t kidding about her love for black.” She continued flipping pages.

  There was a point in the album where there weren’t any pictures of Mom. I assumed the album would end after that first semester of college, but it continued on. There was a picture of me and Ron. And there was even one of me, Ron, and Linda.

  “What the hell?” I asked, pulling the album closer to look.

  “Looks like your dad still kept up with you anyway.”

  The next page had the Austin Homes article he had first spoken to me about a few days ago. I realized that maybe my dad really had always cared about me but just had funny ways of showing it. A weight I hadn’t noticed was there lifted.

  THE SMILE ON Cale’s face made my heart skip a few beats. I was so happy to be able to experience his reconciliation with his dad. It was incredibly satisfying to watch.

  Leaning over to kiss me, he asked, “What do you want for dinner?”

  “I’m more worried about dessert,” I teased.

  “Woman, you are insatiable.” He shook his head at me.

  I laughed at his mock disbelief.

  He stood up and made his way into the kitchen where he began pulling things from the refrigerator. After following him in there, I hopped up on the counter and watched in awe as he started preparing salmon to bake.

  Does my man know how to cook?

  Yep, definitely a keeper.

  Once he got the salmon in the oven, he started throwing ingredients together for a salad.

  “Where’d you learn to cook?”

  He smiled. “Linda. She would let me sit and watch her while she prepared the meals. I think she felt like she was starring in her own cooking show.” He laughed at the memory.

  After the salad was made, he covered it and put it back into the refrigerator. Then he came over to me and I parted my legs so he could stand closer.

  “You’re so beautiful, Lia. You look so carefree and happy right now,” he observed as he looked into my eyes.

  “It’s because of you Cale. You make me incredibly happy,” I told him honestly.

  Smiling, he pulled me closer to him, my bottom almost completely off the edge of the counter. I wrapped my legs around him so I wouldn’t fall. He groaned at our position. Feeling brave, I grabbed the bottom of my shirt and eased it over my head. His hands instantly went to my breasts and he started kissing me urgently.

  I sucked on his tongue as I felt his hands move to my back to unhook my bra. He stepped back for
a moment as he slipped it off. His hands moved deliberately to the button on my pants. A few movements later and he’d readied himself to remove them. Setting me back on the counter and stepping away, he rid me of both my pants and panties at the same time, leaving me completely naked on the counter.

  He was looking over my body as if he were trying to decide where to start. “Looks like dessert’s first this evening,” he growled, stepping between my legs again.

  Gently, he leaned me backwards until my elbows met the counter behind me. Crouching, he moved his mouth over my sex but not touching it yet. I could feel his hot breath on it, which was driving me wild with need.

  “Cale, please,” I begged him.

  With deliberate slowness, he dragged his tongue up to my clit, causing my body to shudder from the contact. He began greedily sucking and licking the tender area. My gasps were getting faster and louder. Right as I was about to come, he stuck in two fingers, causing me to scream out in delight. With the help of his fingers and his clever tongue, I gave in to a body-consuming orgasm, quivering all over.

  While I was still shaking from the aftershocks, he quickly yanked off his shirt and pants, leaving me to gawk at his sculpted physique. He stepped up to me and eased me off of the counter, holding me just over his impressive length. Lowering me just where his tip was touching me, he teased me like this for a moment. When I started to wiggle and whine for him to enter me, he slammed into me with delicious force.

  “Cale!” I screamed as he furiously pounded into me.

  He kissed my neck, rotating between sucking and nibbling. My hands were threaded through his hair as I held on for dear life.

  My second orgasm began to build. “Cale, I’m coming,” I cried out as the shudders took over.

  He groaned into my neck as I felt the hot shot of his orgasm explode into me. His pumping continued while we both rode out the end of our orgasms.

  I sighed at his loss when he set me back down on the counter and pulled out. “Let’s go shower really quick before dinner is ready.” He clutched onto my hand and helped me off of the counter.

  The shower was intended to be quick and uneventful but he still managed to tease my soapy nipples. The quickie against the cold tile wall wasn't supposed to happen either but neither of us complained a single bit. After our naughty little romp and I began washing my hair, he stepped out to check on supper. There was no way I could ever get enough of this man. I wanted to spend every waking moment with him laughing, talking, and making love. We were perfectly matched, and I was so grateful for him in my life.

  After I got dressed, I went back into the kitchen. “Smells delicious,” I praised.

  He smiled as he made our plates. The table had been set with wine poured. “Linda’s salmon was always really good. I’ve only made it a few times for myself, but never for anyone else. Hopefully it turned out as good as she used to make it.” He carried our plates to the table and motioned for me to sit down.

  After I took my place beside him, I bit into the baked salmon and moaned. Yes, it was very good. My man could cook. He grinned, probably knowing that it must be good by the way I was carrying on about it.

  “So will you tell me what you’re going as at the Halloween party?”

  I drained my wine. “Nope. You’ll have to be surprised. I’ve been planning my outfit for months. Now, I finally have someone to show it to. You better believe I am going to make it a surprise. And get your head out of the gutter. I am not going as anything sexy,” I laughed.

  “You’ll be sexy no matter what,” he assured me.

  “Suck up!” I teased. “Even though mine’s a surprise, you can tell me what you plan to be.”

  “Oh no you don’t. If I have to be surprised on Friday, so do you.”

  I tried not to drool as I imagined him as a sexy vampire or a hot, shirtless construction worker.

  After dinner was cleaned up, we moved to the living room to watch a movie. Being a few days from Halloween, the channels were littered with scary movies. We settled on Scream with Neve Campbell. It was an oldie but goodie. Spooning on the couch, we watched the movie with his arm draped across my midsection.

  Halfway through, I could hear the soft sounds of his breathing indicating he had fallen asleep.

  No longer interested in the movie, I allowed myself to enjoy our closeness. I never imagined that I would be watching a movie with a man sleeping on me and not be freaked out. That incident had left me a total mess, but with Cale, it was so easy to forget. He was a healthy distraction and was healing me from my past torment.

  My phone rang, successfully pulling me out of my daydream. I grabbed it off the table and answered it without thinking.

  “Hello, Lia.” The voice was cold and familiar.

  My entire body tensed up as I realized that it was Sam. “What the hell do you want from me, Sam? Or Jose? Or whoever the hell you are?” My voice had raised a few octaves in anger.

  “Tsk, tsk. Lia, you should know the answer already. I want you. How many times do I have to tell you this? I’ve been a busy boy getting my special place all fixed up for you. You’re going to love it there. I miss your pretty face, you know.”

  My body shivered at his words. “Please just leave me alone. I want to be with Cale, not you. Just move on, because things aren’t going to happen between us. You are stalking me, Sam, and you’re going to get caught,” I snapped at him, hoping to break through to him so he’d leave me alone.

  “FUCK CALE!” he screamed into the phone, causing me to shriek in terror.

  Before I could say anything else, Cale yanked the phone away from my ear. “Listen here, motherfucker. I am going to kill you if you even think about coming near Lia. Be ready because I am going to bash your fucking brains in!”

  Sam must have hung up on Cale because he angrily tossed the phone to the other end of the couch.

  I turned to face Cale on the couch and burst into tears. He wrapped his arms tight around me and let me cry into his chest. My now perfect life was being ruined by this psychopath. I finally cried myself to sleep in the safety of Cale’s arms.

  I COULDN’T BELIEVE that fucker had had the audacity to call Lia last night. When I dropped her off at work this morning, she was still visibly upset by his call. Today, I was going to try to figure out more about this Sam guy since the police were limited on what they could do.

  Figuring that the Jose Juarez alias was a good place to start, I began searching the Internet for any kind of information I could find. There was nothing on this guy either. Finally, I called the police nonemergency line to check their progress. Of course, they had nothing at the moment. They probably hadn’t even tried to look for him. This shit pissed me off.

  I eventually decided to call my dad to see what he thought.

  “Hey, son, I’m glad you called. How are you and Lia?”

  “Dad, I need your help. Lia has this guy named Sam stalking her here in Jonestown. He tried to torch her fucking house! The major problem is that he uses an alias, Jose Juarez. I can’t find anything on the alias and I definitely can’t go on just a first name of Sam,” I quickly told him.

  “I see,” he grumbled. Dad likes Lia so I know this is alarming news to him. “Let me check some connections and see if I can get anything for you. And, Cale, this guy seems like a real psycho. You’re going to need to keep your eyes peeled. Crazy people like that just don’t go away. Keep Lia safe,” he warned.

  “Don’t worry, Dad. I pretty much have her under lock and key. I would die before I ever let anything ever happen to her.”

  “I’ll let you know what I find out,” he assured me before we hung up.

  After I picked Lia up from work, we swung by her house to grab more clothes and her costume for tomorrow. She had me laughing as she went to great lengths to hide her costume from me. Once we’d gathered everything she’d need, she locked up her front door.

  Before I could stop myself, I asked her, “Why do you have three locks, Lia?”

  She
froze at my question. “Uh, Cale, I…” she stammered.

  Realizing that, once again, she wasn’t going to tell me, I groaned, “Fuck it. Forget I asked.” Stalking to the truck, I got in and slammed the door behind me before waiting for her to get in.

  She stood on the porch, staring at me in the truck. Dammit. I hadn’t meant to go off on her. It had just been a really bad day.

  After getting back out of the truck, I walked back over to her. Taking her hand, I brought it to my lips. “I’m so sorry, Lia. It’s just that I get pissed at whatever it is you’re holding back because it’s keeping us apart when all I want is to be close to you. Don’t worry. I’m over it. Honestly.”

  Her eyes were about to pool over with tears, but she just lifted her chin and blinked them back. “No, I’m sorry. I’m sorry that I can’t tell you. How can you even want to be with such a coward?” she burst out, clearly upset with herself.

  “Come on.” I led her to the truck, both of her hands in mine. “You’re not a coward. You just aren’t ready. I promise I’ll still be here for you even if you never tell me.”

  I opened the door and she climbed into the truck. “You are perfect, Cale,” she whispered.

  Leaning toward her, I kissed her lips, lingering as I inhaled her feminine scent.

  On the way to my house, I swung through a fast food restaurant and picked us up some burgers. Things were still kind of weird for us. Every time that shithead called, texted, or left her a note, she went into shutdown mode. Today, she seemed very somber even though we’d yet to hear from him.

  After we got home and ate, she went up to shower while I did some work on my laptop. My phone rang while I was looking at pictures one of my subcontractors sent.

  “Hey, Dad. What’s up?” I asked when I answered the phone.

  “Son, I have a friend that’s good at digging for information. He has an address on a Jose Juarez in Jonestown. I’ll email you the address. Be careful,” he warned me.