The Dance

Chapter 11: First Night

The Brown family gathered on the beach to welcome their men home. Lila was an unexpected but pleasant surprise for both Ami and her daughters. Rain and Bird were giddy with excitement to see a woman visiting. The girls longed for the latest news on fashion, makeup and hair and surely the elegant woman climbing out of the skiff would bring updated news of those trends. Matt ran ahead to greet his mother and sisters and to fill them in on who Lila was. Peeking over Matt's shoulder, Lila could see a smile growing larger on Ami's face. Bam groaned and whispered to Lila, "Just ignore the questions about whether or not you want children. My ma has a bad habit of scaring away women who come to visit. Just ask any of my brothers."

Lila thought the remark was odd but then again this whole trip seemed odd to her. She had agreed to come to visit without a plan like where she would sleep or what if she wanted to leave if things didn't go well. All those apprehensions disappeared when Bam grabbed her hand and introduced her to Ami and Billy. Lila extended her hand to shake Ami's but Ami leaned in for a hug. Ami was extremely happy to see her second eldest son with such a pretty woman. Bam didn't fall easily and out of all her sons, she knew if he gave his heart to anyone, she would have to be pretty special. Billy followed suit practically picking her off the ground with his bear hug.

Rain and Bird side hugged her and immediately started bombarding her with questions about new styles. Lila felt at ease as the girls looped their arms through hers and headed back to Browntown leaving Bam to carry her bag and camera.

Bear and Gabe stood beside Bam laughing and joking that if he had planned any alone time with Lila the girls had just blown that expectation. Bam's brow furled and he stomped off muttering expletives under his breath. Bear smiled at Gabe and replied, "This is going to be a fun weekend."

Back at Browntown, Lila was taken on the obligatory tour by Matt. Matt was still a little disappointed that his "future wife" had taken an interest in his younger brother. The brothers had always joked that they had to be careful with their women around Bam because once a woman got comfortable with one of the brothers, he would show them what an upgrade looked like. Matt attributed Bam's success with women to his protector type personality. He always came off gruff or short but eventually women warmed to his charms.

When Bam got to camp, Ami told him Matt had taken Lila for a tour. Bam huffed a deep breath and Ami reminded him the weekend was a long one. Bam heard Lila's laughter coming from the direction of Matt's tire shack and headed in that direction. He spotted Lila circling the shack and inspecting its unusual construction. Just as Bam caught up to her, Bird and Rain swooped in and pulled Lila in the direction of the main cabin. "You'll be staying with us in the main cabin.  Bird and I have made a place  for you in our room." Rain turned to see Bam wince. That wasn't exactly in his game plan. After all, they had already slept together innocently albeit. Lila looked at Joshua with some amount of disappointment and shrugged her shoulders indicating she had no control of this situation. The girls drug her off to the main house. Matt walked by Bam, brushing his shoulder against Bam's and remarked, "Crash and burn, dude, crash and burn."

Bam growled out another chain of expletives as Matt walked off filling the air with his maniacal laughter.

Later that evening as the family gathered for dinner, Bam had hoped to spend some quality time with Lila.  Bear and Gabe had pulled Lila between them. They had done this on purpose to get under Bam's skin which from his scowls were obviously working. Lila appeared to be enjoying herself and fell right in to the exchange of barbs with the brothers. Bam watched as the campfire danced off Lila's long brown hair. He remembered the first time he saw her and how lovely she looked with her hair drawn up and off her neck.  He stared at her so long, Noah had to nudge him to gain his attention when his mother asked him a question.

Lila had noticed how intently Joshua stared at her. His attention to her only made her feel warm inside. If she was reading him correctly, she also wanted some alone time with him. Obviously with a family of nine, privacy in such a small encampment would be difficult.

Noah leaned into Bam's space and whispered something quietly to him under his breath and out of earshot of the family. Winking affirmatively, Noah invited Lila to see his latest experiment back at his tent. Bam quietly slipped away while the remainder of the family indulged in Ami's homemade berry pie.

As Noah escorted Lila in the direction of his lab, he begged off for a moment. Lila found herself alone near the trapper shack until a familiar voice emerged from the evening shadows. "Finally, a moment alone with you."

Bam emerged from the shadow of the trees. Lila's beautiful smile welcomed him in. "You're family is wonderful. I didn't have that luxury growing up. Only child and all."

"Not always wonderful especially when they keep running interference. Do you realize this is the first time all day I've spent with you...alone?"

Bam took a step closer to her and she found herself resting against the side of the trapper shack. She felt somewhat intoxicated by the moonlight and the day's events. "I'm sorry. I think your family was trying to just make me feel welcome. Well, maybe with your brothers, it was more about aggravating you."

Bam agreed shaking his head. "Yes, they know how to push my buttons."

Bam loved the way the moonlight fell on Lila. He thought to himself that she wore moonlight like lingerie, all silky and smooth and yearning to be touched. He stroked the side of her face with the back of his hand.

"Do I make you nervous Lila J?" Bam's eyes locked with hers and he waited for an answer. Lila's chest rose and fell with every breath she took. It was evident that him being in her space made her very nervous. Never being at a loss for words, she just nodded her head up and down.

Bam's hand had moved from her cheek to her neck. He played with the small silver necklace that encircled it. "Any regrets on coming out here?"

Again Lila couldn't form a coherent sentence. She loved his touch. It was gentle and teasing all at the same time. She shook her head side to side indicating she had no regrets. Bam was feeling more confident with every question.

"I never asked you but are you involved with anyone?" Bam continued running his fingers up and down her necklace triggering feelings in Lila that she hadn't even felt toward Bradley. Lila shook her head no. Bam smiled that crooked little smile of his and Lila lost it.

"Then you wouldn't mind if I kissed you Lila J?" Lila tried to hide her feelings but she found her self moving closer to Joshua. His lips dropped to her neck almost immediately. He wanted so badly to touch it, kiss it and rub the nape of it ever since he saw Kenny and Kay walk Lila into the dance and now his longing to do that was satisfied.

Lila moaned as Joshua worked his way down and around her neck. His beard felt rough against the sensitive skin but the sensation sent waves of wanton desire through every part of her body. He gently bit her neck intending to mark her with a most visible love bite, his brand on his woman. Lila felt helpless under his touch especially when he pulled her hair off the back of her neck and began to cover her with feather light kisses and nibbles. Lila groaned for more until the sound of Bird and Rain heading in their direction made her pull away from Joshua.

"Damn, cockblocked by my own sisters." Lila giggled in his ear and broke away to meet Rainy and Bird who were there to take her back to the main cabin to sleep.

"Sweet dreams Joshua" were the last words Bam heard as the trio left him standing alone in the moonlight. Bam suddenly needed a cold Bush shower.