Page 25 of Another Postcard

“Somehow, I managed to stay out of my dad’s line of fire until I was fifteen. Then the cutest guy in school asked me to a dance. I managed to sneak some money from my mother’s purse to buy a dress. On the night of the party, I told my mom I had a study group and wouldn’t be home until late. My father didn’t really care what I did as long as I kept to myself, but I knew deep down that he’d be pissed if he knew I’d been out with a boy. Anyway, I made sure Baylee had dinner and was asleep before I left and went to a friend’s house to change. I was so stupid,” she hissed, clearly furious with her younger self. “I didn’t change out of my dress before going home, and when I got there, my dad was still awake. He saw my outfit and he knew I’d lied, and sure enough, he was pissed as fuck. He—well, he broke two of my ribs and—never mind, the details aren’t important,” she stated with an emphatic shake of her head. I wanted to argue with her, to demand she tell me every little thing her father had ever done to hurt her so I could make a list, find the son of a bitch, and give him the same treatment. But, I knew that wasn’t what she needed at that moment, so instead, I silently raged while outwardly remaining calm.

“I certainly learned my lesson, but it was like that day had opened his eyes and suddenly, I couldn’t hide anymore. I had to be hyperaware of myself and Baylee at all times. To make every effort to stay out of his destructive path. Being forced to be so vigilant made everything around me come into sharper focus, and that’s when I began to notice things I’d been blissfully unaware of. Eventually, I took to sleeping in Baylee’s room, so that if she woke up in the middle of the night, she wouldn’t be scared and cry. Her room was closer to my parents and I started to notice that amidst my mother’s crying and the sound of my father hitting her, there were also”—Brooklynn shuddered, and I ran my hand down over her back a few times—“moans and grunting.”

Oh, fuck.My brain stalled and I silently begged for my assumption to be wrong.

“It was pretty obvious that my mom wasn’t. . .um, a willing . . . participant in their bedroom activities. Her aversion to Baylee started to become a little clearer. She was a constant reminder of what my dad had done. What he was still doing to her.”

Please, please, please.I chanted in my head. I didn’t want to ask the question, I was so afraid of the answer. Then, I couldn’t wait anymore. I had to know. “Did he touch you, Brooklynn?”

She froze for a moment and my stomach lurched. “No,” she whispered. “Not like that. He just hit—well, you know.”

I said a silent chant of thanks to whatever rock god watched over my girl and a tidal wave of relief crashed over me, my insides unclenching.

“It was right around this age when it started to become clear that Baylee had some developmental delays,” Brooklynn said, continuing her story. “And we started to recognize the signs that her mind hadn’t matured along with her body.” She tilted her head back, staring at the ceiling, giving me a clear view of her beautiful face. I was tortured by the deep sadness I saw there. “I think it’s what kept our dad from getting physically rough with her, though. I counted that as a blessing, even if I had to take the brunt of his anger for the both of us.” Her brows furrowed and she looked directly into my eyes. “I’d do it again and again,” she said fiercely. “I’ll never regret protecting her.” I threw a little of my caution to the wind and tenderly brushed my lips against hers, for only a second. A sweet, warm feeling sliced through me when I saw her expression brighten, if only the tiniest bit.

“Things between my mom and Baylee never improved. Mom pretended that she didn’t even exist, never acknowledged her unless there was absolutely no other choice. And”—she glanced away and when her eyes returned to mine, they were drowning in guilt—“does it make me a bad person that I was grateful for her disability? For the fact that it kept her from experiencing all of the things I did at the hands of our parents?”

I cupped Brooklynn’s face in my palms and stared deeply into her intoxicating, mocha depths, making sure she knew I was one hundred percent serious. “It makes you an incredible sister, baby. I understand that you wouldn’t have chosen for your sister to have these challenges in her life, but since she does, it’s okay to appreciate the small blessings it brings.”

She shook her head lightly. “I’m not even sure how much Baylee really remembers about the way we grew up. All she ever reminisces about are things we did together.” The need to gather her up in my arms and comfort her was hard to ignore, but I was still afraid to push her, so I simply placed another sweet kiss on her lips before guiding her head back down to my chest.

“I was seventeen, just barely finishing up my junior year of high school when I came home and found my mom on the kitchen floor, bleeding from multiple stab wounds in her belly. My dad was passed out beside her, the bloody knife clutched in his hand. Thankfully, Baylee was in an after-school program that day.” I heard her tiny sniffle and tilted her head back just a little so I could wipe away the tears making tracks over her cheeks. “I called 911 and did my best to stem the flow of bleeding, but she died on the way to the hospital. She was pregnant again, and my dad found out, he went into a rage. He pled guilty and was sentenced to life. He was stabbed and died in prison last year. Ironic, right?” Brooklynn stared off at nothing in particular and shrugged. “Baylee and I were shuffled off to separate foster homes, but were lucky enough to be in the same town. Her foster parents seemed grateful for my help and let me help take care of her. I spent as much time with her as I could. I didn’t want her to ever wonder if I’d left her forever.” Brooklynn bit her lip again. “She’s all I have.”

I gave into the urge and slipped both of my arms around her, giving her a light squeeze. “Shewasall you had,” I corrected. Her head popped up, and a little of her natural sparkle was back in her eyes as she gave me a tiny smile.

“Exactly.”

I shifted our bodies so we were stretched out on the couch with her lying on top of me. I didn’t even have to fight my body’s reaction to her position. This wasn’t about lust or desire, I wanted nothing more at that moment than to give her the emotional support she needed. I wrapped her into my embrace, and with my hand at the back of her head, I guided her down to rest it just below my chin. I inhaled her delicious scent and felt a feeling of rightness flood my mind and heart.

“Do you understand now?” I heard her ask, her voice muffled because her face was buried in the crook of my neck.

“Did you think your history would make me not want to be with you?” I queried incredulously.

With a push of her palms against my chest for leverage, she sat up and straddled my legs. Amazingly, this conversation was still too important for me to focus on her position and the proximity of her sex to my groin.Mostly.

“No, I meant, so you understand why I can’t jeopardize what I have here by dating you?”

“What?” I asked, honestly stupefied by her logic. I pushed her hair back behind her ears and framed her face with my hands. “How would letting me take you out on a date threaten anything?”

“What happens when you’re done with me, Levi?” she cried. “I’m the one who’ll lose everything. It’s not like anyone is going to choose me over you!”

After the concert, everyone in the band had threatened me not to fuck with her. Sasha’s vivid description of her retaliation if I broke Brooklynn’s heart was a little frightening. Honestly, I wasn’t sure they wouldn’t kick me out and keep her. The idea made me laugh, but I stopped immediately when I saw her eyes swamped with hurt. “Baby, there is so much wrong with that statement, I don’t know where to start.” I shook my head unbelievingly. How had she not realized how much everyone had come to love and respect her? She was definitely right—we were her family. Though, I was more like a family friend, considering I wanted to fuck her.

She frowned and moved to climb off of me, but I clamped my hands around her hips to keep her in place. “First of all, if you and I weren’t together anymore”—she opened her mouth, and I knew she was going to argue that we weren’t together at all but I gave her a pointed look, and she shut her mouth—“you would still be a part of Stone Butterfly. Not only do you have a contract, but everyone else would kick my ass if I made them choose between us. You’re right, Brooklynn, you are one of us. We wouldn’t be Stone Butterfly without you anymore.”

I slid my hands down to her ass and squeezed her cheeks, dragging her forward until her center lined up perfectly with mine. The fact that we were done with the emotional shit was more than obvious by the size of the bulge in my jeans. Her eyes widened to saucers when she felt it pressing between her legs. “On to my next question,” I purred. “Who says I’ll ever be done with you?”

15

Brooklynn

Levi’s aquamarinepools grew dark and heavy-lidded as he stared at me. I started to squirm but stopped immediately when I felt his hardness growing even more where I was pressed against it. “I didn’t think you were a one-woman kind of guy,” I muttered, trying to stay very still and avoid my underwear getting any wetter. I swore since I met Levi, I was keeping underwear companies in business with the amount I had to replace. I should’ve bought disposable panties.Or edible ones.I mentally snarled at the naughty little voice in my head.

When I glanced back down at Levi, he was scowling at me.Huh?Had I missed something?

“I am not now, nor have I ever been a cheater, Brooklynn.” His voice was hard, but I saw a glimpse of vulnerability and hurt in his eyes.

With a grimace, I apologized. “I’m sorry, Levi. That’s not what I meant. Really.”

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