A Family Affair (Book 1 of the Smalltown Superstars Series)

6

A lustful gasp escaped her lips as Raven felt Liam’s mouth move over her throat leaving a path of hot kisses that set her skin on fire. His hand cupped her breast firmly, the pad of his thumb teasing the taut peeked n****e. His hard body moved over hers, braced above her. She arched her hips up to him silently begging him to end the terrible craving tormenting her. She felt his knee nudge her legs apart and she welcomed him. She wanted him, needed him inside her.

A bang outside startled Raven awake and she looked around for a moment unsure of where she was. Her eyes adjusted to the early morning light and she looked around the trailer slowly remembering where she was. She heard another sound outside. Someone was moving around out there she realized.

Raven felt the mattress shift as Liam rolled over behind her, his arm draped about her waist. Raven tensed at first and then she heard his breathing and realized he was still asleep. She didn’t move, she could feel his warm breath on the nape of her neck, sending shivers of pleasure down her spine. It was shameful how his simple closeness could make her grow damp with desire. His arm was about her waist, his hand resting just above her hips.

She heard him give a little groan and shift in his sleep. Raven tried to repress a gasp when she felt the shock of his morning arousal pressing against her bottom. It was long, rigid, and thick. Even through their clothes it startled her as if they were flesh to flesh. A part of her wanted to press back against him. To snuggle into his hard body. To reach back and wrap her hand around his thick length and wake Liam with a smile. The very thought of it excited her.

Suddenly somebody banged on the side of the trailer and yelled, “Wake up Romeo.” and then there was laughter. Liam startled away and sat up. He looked around for a moment and then laid down again. He pulled the blanket over his head and groaned.

Raven sat up throwing her legs over the edge of the bed. She stretched trying to put some distance between them and pretending she had not noticed anything. “They wake up early.” She said looking back over her shoulder.

“That is when the best fishing is.” He said from under the blanket.

She reached over and took hold of the blanket and slowly pulled it down to reveal his face. He looked right at her with a cheeky grin as she pulled the blanket away to look at him. “So, what is the problem, not a morning person?” She asked with a smirk.

Liam looked her dead in the eye with a wicked grin. “Not at all, I love mornings.” His dark eyes flashed with amusement. “I just got a raging hard on, and unfortunately I can’t do a damn thing about it.” Raven was in shock, she didn’t know how to react to that. She had an intense desire to aide him with his problem but she was not about to reveal that to him. Liam laughed as he sat up and moved around her to climb off the bed. His body brushing against hers, his lips grazing her ear as he whispered. “Relax sweetheart, I don’t intend to ravage you.” He climbed off the bed and walked to the other side of the small trailer and started sorting through a bag for a t-shirt. “You shouldn’t ask the question if you don’t want to hear the answer.” He reached for his tackle box and his fishing rod then turned to look at her. “You going to join us?” He asked.

She smiled and shook her head. “I think we should be getting back to the city.” Raven declined.

Liam raised a dark brow in challenge. “What is wrong, crashing the party not as much fun when you get an invitation?”

Raven tried to repress her amusement. “No, it is just that I have a lot of plans that need my attention and I should have been back last night.”

“Oh, come on,” he teased, “we both knew you would have just come back out here to pester me again since I haven’t given in to your demands yet. You are just feeling guilty for not having gone home last night. Don’t think of it as spending the night with another man,” he winked at her, “think of it as saving on gas.” He teased as he left the trailer.

Raven laughed, Liam certainly had an interesting outlook on things. Why did she feel so guilty, nothing had happened between them? Ok perhaps some heated glances and some innuendo on his part, but she could hardly be held to blame for that. But her dreams they betrayed her, in her dreams she threw caution to the wind and acted on desire. Damn her dreams. She was not going to allow this crazy infatuation to mess with her head. She needed some distance. She needed to go home and regroup and rethink her strategy.

Raven stood up and went outside. She found Maggie packing up the rod she had been using yesterday. “What are you doing?” She asked.

“Going fishing.” Maggie said with a smile. “This is a lot more fun with Steve then it was with Ron.”

“No I want to go home.” Raven stressed.

“What for? It is not like we got anything at home to rush back to; besides Steve invited us to stay the rest of the weekend. Well technically until tomorrow that is when they are leaving, so I guess really just for another night. I really want to stay.”

“No.” Raven protested.

“Come one.” Maggie argued. “After all this was your idea remember. You were going to stick to him until he saw you in his sleep. Well here’s your chance.” She said picking up the other rod and forcing it into Raven’s hands. “Let’s go fishing.” Raven grudgingly took the rod and followed Maggie. Her friend was right this had been her idea, and she was stuck having to follow through on it. It wasn’t like she was having a bad time. She had actually been really enjoying herself, unfortunately that was her problem. The more she got to know Liam the more she liked him. She didn’t want to like him, not like this, he was far too tempting.

The women joined the men in the river and like the day before Liam was kind enough to bait Raven’s lure for her. The last thing she wanted to do was to touch those slimy worms. The very thought disgusted her. She cast out her lure and stood in the warm water staring straight ahead. Maybe she was just being paranoid. After all it wasn’t like anything was going to happen between Liam and herself.

***

Liam was pleased to see that Raven had decided not to leave as she had been planning to do so. Although he was sure he had Steve to thank for that. Had his friend not so completely enthralled Raven’s girlfriend they might have actually left. Liam had decided to seduce his brother’s fiancée but he was not entirely sure how he was going to go about to doing so. He had never before attempted to take another man’s woman. It had always been against his moral compass to do so. He had been cheated on and hurt, he didn’t wish that on anyone… except Dawson. Dawson deserved a good dose of his own medicine.

Waking up beside Raven this morning had felt great. It had been a long time since he woke up next to a woman. Her firm bottom tucked in snugly against him. It had made him regret his promise to keep his hands to himself, but he was a man of his word, and she was certainly not ready. He had noticed the way she looked at him, seen the desire in her eyes that matched his own, he wasn’t blind; but she wasn’t ready. Raven still held tight to the notion of fidelity. She believed she needed to be faithful and she struggled to do so. He wouldn’t force it, he could wait.

They spent the better part of the day fishing and joking around. Late in to the afternoon Harry and Clark took the truck into town for a beer run. With two extra guest they had run out long before they had expected. Steve had taken advantage of this time to coax Maggie back into his tent for some afternoon delights, leaving Liam and Raven to their own devices. Not interested in sitting around to listen to the sound effects Liam suggested they take a hike to which Raven readily agreed.

Liam lead the way down a narrow dirt path through the bushes lining the riverbank. He had hiked these trails many times with his grandfather as he grew up. They were quiet with a nice view of the river. It circled the camp ground for the most part and then they doubled back. Raven kept pace with him at his side as they headed away from the camp and disappeared into the bush alone. “So, can I put you and your girlfriend down on the guest list?” She asked hopefully.

Liam smirked, he was beginning to wonder when she was going to start harassing him about the wedding. “First off, I have no girlfriend. Second, even if I did I wouldn’t be coming.” He confirmed once more. “This weekend changes nothing. My feelings on the matter have not changed.” He said holding back a branch for her to pass by.

“I am surprised to find that you don’t have someone in your life.” She said looking at him. “I just mean, you are attractive, and fun, and amusing; I would think you would be spoken for. Most guys like you are already married.” She teased.

“I was.” He admitted as they headed up a slope.

“Oh.” She said with some surprise. “What happened?”

“We got divorced.” He said taking her hand and helping her up the steep slope. “She cheated on me.”

Raven went quiet for a moment once she reached the top. She stared into his eyes. “I’m sorry.” She said with some understanding. It was clear to him she understood the pain he felt.

“I came home one night to find out she had been having an affair for months.” He said with an awkward smile. “The worse part was I never had clue. The whole time everything felt right, I never knew she had another lover. I was completely oblivious.” He said turning away and starting back on the trail. “So, we got divorced. I haven’t been much for the dating scene since. A girl or two since but nothing serious. What about you? You look so young, have you dated lots before Dawson?”

“A bit but they were pretty immature.” She said following.

“If you don’t mind me asking just how old are you?” He asked eyeing her carefully.

“Twenty-four.”

Liam laughed out loud. She was just a kid, no wonder Dawson got away with fooling around on her he was probably her first real boyfriend. He could kill someone and all he would have to do was say I love you baby and she would forgive him. Young women were predictable and gullible. “And you two have been together four years now?” She nodded. “So, the truth is Dawson’s the only man you have ever been with.” He observed.

“No.” She corrected him. “I had a few other boyfriends. I had three in high school alone.”

Liam chuckled and grinned at her. “They don’t count as men.” He informed her. “A man is someone that does not still live at home with his parents and bum money for they movies.”

She was quiet for a long moment and then she nodded. “Then yes he is.” That is what he thought. She wasn’t in love with Dawson because it was love it was just lack of any better options. If she married Dawson she would one day regret it. He knew his brother well enough to know he would not make anyone a good husband.

“I see.” He said continuing on.

“What is that supposed to mean?” She asked following him.

“What do you mean?”

“You said ‘I see’ like you knew something I didn’t.” She said suspiciously.

“No, I didn’t.” He denied it.

“Yes, you did. What do you mean by that?” She demanded. He simply shrugged his shoulders. “You think I’m making a mistake?”

“Any woman marrying Dawson would be making a mistake.” He agreed.

“What exactly do you have against him?” She asked, following him up the trail.

“I already told you.”

“No, you didn’t.”

“Sure, I did. He is a liar and a …”

“Habitual cheat, yeah I remember, but that doesn’t answer my question. There must be something specific that rubs you the wrong way besides a character flaw.”

“Don’t dismiss character flaws so easily, a man’s character defines a man’s worth.” He said. “Perhaps at this point the real question shouldn’t be why don’t I put up with his flaws but why do you?” He asked stopping to look her in the eyes. “Why do you put up with the other women?”

Raven’s back straightened defensively and her lips pressed together firmly. She stared him down. She clearly didn’t want to deal with Dawson’s history. Perhaps she hoped if she ignored it that it would go away, a foolish female tactic that never worked. “He is not like that anymore. He loves me.” She insisted.

“Of course, he does.” Liam said. “It is five o’clock, do you know where your man is?” He asked lifting a questioning brow. When she didn’t answer he turned and kept walking. He headed down another slope and could hear Raven behind him.

“He is working very hard on landing a huge account in Ottawa. He is working. I know exactly what he is doing. He is busting his hump working to provide a life for the two of us and here I am with you. Trying to convince you to come see him. I shouldn’t even be here.” She said coming down the slope quickly as she snapped at him. Raven was so caught up in what she was saying she forgot to watch where she was stepping. She stepped wrong and a loose rock slipped out from under her foot.

Liam heard Raven cry out as she fell. He turned and saw her tumbled down the riverbank. He quickly moved to catch her and his hand just missed hers. Liam shuffled down the side of the bank following Raven down. She made a big splash as she hit the water below. Liam reached the river a second later and jumped in after her. It wasn’t that deep. The water came just above his waist as he reached in and grabbed Raven and helped her to her feet.

She flailed her arms trying to get her balance. Coughing and spitting up water as she tried to catch her breath. Her dark hair was in wet tangles over her face and shoulders. Liam gently brushed the wet hair from her face so he could see her eyes. Her eyes were wide, still surprised from her sudden fall. He couldn’t help but laugh. “Are you always so clumsy?” He teased. “Are you hurt?”

She gave herself a quick look over and then shook her head. “No, I don’t think so.” She said still a bit in shock.

“Ok, let’s head back then.” He suggested looking at the steep bank. They would have to wade up river a bit to find an easier way up. “Give me your hand.” He said taking her hand so that the current did not push her over. It was not strong enough to carry her off but here at this point in the river it had grown stronger and with her tiny frame it could make standing and wading through the water exceedingly difficult for someone so small. Liam held her hand tight and pulled her along in the water.

They waded up river about ten minutes until they reached a low rocky point in the riverbank. They exited the river at this point and started back to the camp site both dripping wet. They reached the camp shortly and Liam led Raven into the trailer. He knew she did not have a change of clothes. She had not intended to stay more than a few hours the other day so she had not come prepared.

He himself had only brought so much. He took out a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. He tossed Raven the t-shirt. “You can wear this while your clothes are drying.” He offered. “It might be a little big.” He held the jeans in his hands. “You can change in here.” He offered leaving the trailer. He would change in Harry’s tent and then hang his wet clothes over the side of the truck to dry.