“Sage?”
“Let’s have lunch and forget about this. All of it,” she said, wiggling down off the counter. He stepped aside as she fixed her dress and reached for the platter of food.
“I don’t want to forget about it. I want to talk about it and work through this with you.”
She took a deep breath. The words in her head broke her heart before they even reached her lips.
“Then you’ll have to leave now. This conversation is over.”
Chapter 4
Sage revved the engine on the dirt bike. One, two, three turns and the sound of the motor getting louder hurt her ears despite the helmet she wore. She needed this. She needed to be free, feel free, and escape the thoughts running rampant in her head. Ever since yesterday and lunch with Dale, she couldn’t get the bad memories out of her past out of her head. She started wanting things. Things, a woman like her could never have, like peacefulness, honest affection, tenderness, and love. God, why the hell am I thinking about love?
She sped off, doing a wheelie in the process before heading straight toward the rough terrain. She didn’t know why she chose the dangerous path, or what lead her so far off the regular route a lot of the other guys took, but the more dangerous the stronger the rush. She clenched her teeth and tried going faster, dangerously faster without thinking of consequences, or allowing fear to hold her back. It all wiped out the pain, the emptiness she felt inside and the longing she started to have. She didn’t know how long she was gone. But her arms were shaking, her legs and ass ached, and she knew she had to head back down. As she made her way, avoiding down branches, jagged rocks with little room to maneuver the thick wheels of the dirt bike, she thought about them. The way Dale’s lips felt against hers, the way his large, hard body pressed against her body. She liked him, just like she like Virgo, Quaid and Matt. God, what would they do if they saw her now?
The thought pissed her off and made her feel like fighting the attraction even more. She revved the engine, sped up too quickly on the turn as the tire spun and she slid. Thank god she wore the gloves, as her hands landed on the dirt, the sound of the roaring engine a reminder of the powerful machine that was lying on its side, and against her leg.
She looked out through the woods after turning the engine off. It was so silent and peaceful out here. No one was around, and she was lost in her thoughts. She wasn’t afraid of silence, of emptiness. In fact, she was an expert at feeling empty. Her somber thoughts brought on images of Dale, Virgo, Matt and Quaid, and their gorgeous faces, their maturity, experienced personalities, and all those muscles. She felt the tenderness in her breasts, and that ache in her pussy, even deeper in her core. She could get lost in their eyes, their touch, and their kisses.
“No, you can’t. Weakness is their power. I can’t give in, no matter how much I want to have them, be touched by them, and I can’t take the chance of it turning bad. I just don’t know how to trust.”
The defeated, empty feeling consumed her again, and she did what she did best, and blocked it out, and focused on the adrenaline rush. Who cares if I crash or get hurt? It’s temporary pain. Pain is something I’m used to.
She growled in annoyance and anger, knowing that weakness was unacceptable. She pulled the bike back up, hoped back into position and started the engine. The deep rumbling sound echoed in the quiet woods, and vibrated in her chest. Speed and danger always take away the emptiness, even if it’s only temporary.
Somehow she made it back through the woods and into the clearing, as she sped up and began to loop back around toward the road that led to where her friends were hanging out she saw the truck and nearly hit it. The person honked their horn and she sped up ahead, glancing over her shoulder only a second but long enough to see that the driver was pissed. She could hear the truck’s engine and knew he was chasing her. She smiled to herself as she slowed down, letting him think he was making leeway when she realized who it was.
Dale? Oh shit!
Sage tightened her grip, popped a wheelie, and sped way ahead of the truck. He attempted to seed up, but she took off to the right and the dirt road that led to another wooded area the truck couldn’t possibly follow. As she backtracked to the right she could see him in the distance, truck stopped and getting out with his cell phone to his ear. It was time to hide before the Calvary showed up and busted her.
* * * *
“She’s avoided us all week. Tonight, I made reservations with Abigail to have Sage be our server, and instead Meredith shows up at the table and says that Sage can’t wait on us tonight,” Matt stated as he stared at Dale from across the kitchen island at home.
“She wouldn’t even come over. She gave a wave, and half a smile but ignored us the entire time,” Quaid added.
“I told you all about what happened at her cottage, about her reaction to us fooling around. She felt the attraction. She freaked when things got a little too hot and heavy.” Dale ran his fingers through his hair. They were all at their wits’ end. They thought they were making progress but she was cutting them off before they could let her get to know them.
“Do you think she was sexually assaulted back in Detroit, and Lena and the guys don’t know it?” Virgo asked. They all stared at him. Matt felt his chest tighten instantly as if he had a knife in his gut.
“You think that’s a possibility?” Matt asked.
“Listen, back in Delight, the women, our friends, all came from troubled pasts. There was abuse, neglect, and assault in various ways. They were strong-armed by powerful, hurtful men who not only manipulated their minds, but also hurt them so deeply, it was like their souls were scarred forever. It’s hard to explain. But the fear, the distrust is so deep, their only defense is to resist feeling at all. Sage shows the signs. She’s scared, and I’m certain it’s from her past.”
“What do we do to help her, Virgo? How do we make her understand that she’s safe with us?” Quaid asked.
“We have to gain her trust and we can’t give up the fight for her. I think she’ll come around. After all, it’s been years of conditioning and hardening her heart that we need to break through. The four of us together should be able to.”
“I’m in. Her kisses and the feel of her body in my arms are things I want all the time,” Dale stated.
“Yeah well, the rest of us haven’t experienced what you did, so if you don’t mind, keep the erotic thoughts to yourself,” Matt said, and they mumbled in agreement.
“
Back to business. We need to finish redoing those surveillance cameras on the edge of town and then on Main Street. The video line that connects to the sheriff’s department needs to be upgraded. The picture has been coming in fuzzy. Some kind of interference,” Dale told them.
“Okay, you and Virgo handle it. Whatever is necessary and needed, we’ll get it. The safety of this town is top priority,” Matt said. They all agreed.