True North

Chapter 61

That evening, Stormy sat on her father's sofa with Brian right beside her, watching the nightly news. As the broadcast drew to a close, Walter rose stiffly from his recliner.

"Time to drain the main vein," he said as he passed the end of the couch.

Brian snorted as he stifled a laugh, and Stormy just rolled her eyes.

"Thanks for sharing, Dad," she said with dry sarcasm.

The sound of Walter's slippers scuffing down the hall was followed shortly by the click of the latch as the bathroom door swung shut. Stormy closed the small gap between her and Brian, draping her leg over his as she rested her head on his shoulder. He took her hand, lacing her fingers with his.

"See, isn't this better?" he prodded. "I can pick you up at work, or come see you at your house, or walk down the street holding your hand." He looped an arm around her shoulders and pressed his lips to the top of her head, pausing to breathe in the scent of her hair. "No more hiding, no more sneaking around..."

She turned her face up to his with a loopy grin. "I admit it—you were right," she confessed. "This is better. Much, much better!"

Brian leaned down and brushed his lips gently over hers. She turned in to his kiss, letting out a breathy moan as he threaded his fingers through the back of her hair and covered her mouth with his. She tugged at the front of his shirt, drawing him closer.

"Oh, for heaven's sake!" Walter spat as he reentered the room, startling them both. "Is this what I'm going to have to put up with now—the two of you playing Tonsil Hockey on my couch every day?" He snatched the remote from the table beside his chair and tossed it onto the couch beside Stormy. "I'm going upstairs to bed, so watch whatever you want. And both of you keep your damn clothes on!" He turned his attention solely to Brian. "I like you, son, but I'm not sure how I feel about the prospect of you violating my daughter!"

Stormy smiled wickedly. "Sorry, Dad, but you're a little late on that score," she said, sliding a lascivious gaze in Brian's direction as she spoke. "He's already violated me, in several ways."

Brian elbowed her in the ribs, and she smirked up at her father with a challenge in her eye, but his stony expression and the vein throbbing in his temple made her immediately regret her cocky attitude. Walter's mouth was pressed into a thin, hard line, and his breath whooshed heavily in and out his nostrils as his eyes narrowed into slits. He stood glaring at Brian, who sat rigid on the sofa, his own eyes frozen wide with deer-in-the-headlights panic. Finally, after a long moment of weighty silence, Brian found his voice.

"Never in this house, though," he ventured nervously, his eyes still locked with Walter's.

Walter seemed to consider this for a moment before the shadow finally passed from his expression, and he nodded his head once.

"Amen to that," he said, moving to exit the room. "Let's keep it that way."

"Yes, sir," Brian agreed with obvious relief.

He sank back into the sofa and waited, barely breathing until Walter's bedroom door closed. Then, in one swift movement, he flipped Stormy onto her back and pinned her arms above her head as he hovered over her.

"Payback is a bitch!" he grinned, and then tickled her until she begged for mercy.

Their horseplay was interrupted by the ringing of the doorbell, and Stormy flew to answer it before whoever it was had a chance to ring it a second time. She heaved the door open to find Amy on the other side.

"You. Sneaky. Little. Witch!" Amy said accusingly, although her eyes were smiling. "I can't believe you didn't tell me!"

Damn, she's heard already!