Perfectly Broken (23 page)

“I couldn’t trust those girls.”

“Not even Heather?”

Reed faked a tight smile. “Not even Heather.” He kissed her on the lips. “What about you? Since you’re not on birth control, you always used condoms, too?”

“I told you I haven’t dated since college.”

“Right. Before then? Were you on birth control before?”

She shifted her feet. “No.”

“I’m confused.”

“What are you confused about?” Peyton asked.

“You always used condoms?”

She twirled her locket. “Can we talk about something else?”

“No,” he teased, “you never let me off the hook.”

“I’d rather not talk about this.”

“What did you use?”

“Nothing.”

Reed shook his head in disbelief. “You just left it to chance?”

“Let’s talk about something else.”

He tickled her. “Not until you tell me.”

“I lost my virginity when I was raped, OK?” Peyton barked. “Happy now?” She shook her head and exhaled.

“Jesus, I’m sorry,” Reed said, falling back, stunned.

“I swear, you can be so damn stupid sometimes!”

A virgin!
A woman so sexy, so responsive, so good with her hands, Reed never would’ve guessed in a million years. He grabbed the back of his neck. “Why didn’t you just tell me?”

“Because it’s embarrassing,” Peyton said, looking away from him. “I never intended to wait until I was married or anything. I wasn’t a prude. I had boyfriends. We did other stuff, but I’d never actually had sex.”

“So I’ll be your ‘real’ first time?”

She turned her eyes to him, his face soft and innocent. “We’ll see.”

Reed wrapped his arms around her. “Does that mean you’re cherry pie?” Of all the things Peyton had shared with him, he still didn’t know what kind of pie she was.

Peyton playfully swatted him. “You are disgusting!”

He stroked her cheek then his eyes turned serious. “If you change your mind, I can wear condoms. I just don’t want you to feel any pressure or do anything you’re not comfortable with.”

“I don’t want to be like any of your other women. When we ....”

“How about now?” Reed’s face lit up.

Peyton smiled. “
When
we make love, I want you to feel only me, and I want to feel all of you.” She pulled Reed close to her, feeling he was ready now. And she finally was, too — but didn’t want her first time to be when she was on her period. “I’ll make an appointment with my doctor to talk about my options.”

* * *

The morning came quickly, and Peyton lay in bed watching Reed scurry around, looking anything but his cool, confident self. She’d been enjoying the show for almost five minutes.

“Shit!” Reed looked under the bed. “I didn’t realize sleepovers were so damn complicated.” He stood up from the floor, his hand gripping the back of his neck, and continued his search for his shirt. “Next time you’re sleeping at my place.”

“Sure,” Peyton said, trying not to giggle, still wearing his shirt from the night. “Let me help you look.” She got on her knees on the bed and started to undo a few buttons. “I think I found it.”

Reed turned around, her ample cleavage coming into view. “You naughty little girl.” He captured her in his arms. “I’m going to miss you today.” He unbuttoned the last few buttons and slid his shirt off her shoulders, exposing her round breasts seeming to beg for his touch.

“They’re not sore right now,” she said.

He groaned, wanting nothing more than to bury himself in her cleavage, hating when work got in the way. He slipped on the shirt, and Peyton did the buttons for him, her breasts rubbing slightly against his chest.

“See you tonight,” she said, then he rushed off to work. She fell back onto her plush comforter and pillows, a huge smile on her face, and ran a hand along her fluted bed post carved with delicate rosettes. She bought the bed years ago in the hope she’d find someone special to share it with, and now she finally had.

She hopped up and opened a dresser drawer throwing on a shirt. Her mind began to race. She moved some things aside then opened a few more, finding a few empty. Then she looked in her closet; there was plenty of room there. She didn’t want Reed to move in, but there was certainly enough room for him to bring a few things to her place — at least a shirt or two. She stood in the middle of her room wondering if it was too soon to ask and what Reed would even say — and if he’d want her to leave a few things at his place. Then her bedroom door flew open.

Peyton jumped then settled herself at the sight of Reed, his eyes on fire. “Did you forget something?” she asked.

“I forgot to kiss you goodbye.”

“You came back to kiss me goodbye?”

He walked towards her and took her by the waist. “Yeah, I got to the end of the block and realized I hadn’t kissed you.” His eyes landed on her full lips, his hand stroking her cheek. He slid his hand to the back of her neck and pulled her lips to his, kissing her like the first time on her front porch — as if he might never see her again. When he was through, he turned around to leave, but she grabbed him from behind.

“I forgot something, too.” She dropped to her knees and took off his belt. Reed ran his fingers through her long, brown hair, hoping this was going where he’d dreamed. She unbuckled his pants and dropped them to his ankles. Then she did the same with his boxer briefs. He slipped them off before Peyton pushed him onto the bed and took off his shirt.

He was hard and huge, but she didn’t start there. She circled his abs with her tongue then looked up under her lashes, watching him. He pulled a few strands of hair off her face and gently grasped her hair so he could see her face. It excited her, his hand holding her hair, his dick so close to her mouth. She kissed her way down his abs and to his inner thighs, feeling his whole body tingle, seeing his toes curl.

Her breasts rubbed against him as she moved down, her hard nipples brushing against his dick. Then she licked her lips and took his balls in her hand, giving a gentle tug. He watched her work, watched her pleasure him, with a sparkle in her eye, clearly enjoying herself. She moved her soft, pink lips to his balls and took them in her mouth. “God, baby,” he groaned.

Then she slid her lips up just a little, so her tongue could lick the base of his dick, letting it linger while tugging his balls again. She moved up a bit more and took his dick in her mouth, surrounding him, sucking firmly, tightly, sliding her mouth up and down, caressing him with her tongue. He thrust a few times in her mouth while she kept her pace steady, not wanting to rush their first time and never wanting him to forget the warmth of her mouth around him.

Reed closed his eyes and relaxed. “Yes, baby.” Peyton was better than he ever imagined. She was an expert with her hands, but her mouth, her lips, her breath, her tongue were beyond incredible. He opened his eyes, seeing her head move up and down, his hand holding her hair, and felt his body start to tremble. He didn’t want it to end, but he was getting close. She seemed to sense it, too. She grabbed him with her hand and began to pump up and down while sucking more forcefully.

“I’m almost there, baby,” Reed said.

Peyton sucked him more, letting her tongue slide up and down, feeling his dick get harder, bigger, fuller. She wanted him, all of him. He suddenly released into her mouth while panting her name, and she kept on sucking, gently and slower now, not stopping until he was totally done.

She looked up at him, her baby blue eyes showing her pleasure. “You are incredible,” Reed said, running his fingers through her hair. Then he lifted her up to him and rested her head on his chest, holding her close.

“I hope I didn’t make you too late for work,” she said.

“THANKS FOR STARTING
prep, Julia,” Peyton said, rushing through the back entrance. “Sorry I’m a little late.” Peyton threw on her apron and looked at the clock in the kitchen. The shop opened in ten minutes.

“Some woman has been hanging out in front,” Julia said. “It’s a little creepy.”

It wasn’t uncommon for drunks or addicts to wander around New Orleans, even among the high end shops on Magazine Street, particularly in the morning hours before businesses opened, still high from the night before. Some of them were just looking for food; some of them didn’t know where they were. And Peyton’s shop, the smell of freshly-baked pie, always seemed to draw a good number of them. She often wished she had a male employee to usher them away before opening, but with just Julia, it was up to Peyton to deal with them. Thankfully, most of the time it wasn’t too difficult. A leftover slice of pie and some encouragement to scoot down the road often did the trick.

Peyton walked towards the front of her shop and stopped in her tracks, her blood pressure rising, as the woman outside stared back at her. It wasn’t a drunk or addict this time. And a male employee wasn’t going to help. A leftover piece of pie or encouraging words weren’t going to work, either — not for Heather, dressed all in black.

Peyton unlocked the front entrance and stepped outside. “We’re closed.”

“I’m not here for pie,” Heather said.

“Then you should leave.”

“Not until we have a little talk.”

“This is ridiculous,” Peyton said. “He doesn’t want you. I know it must hurt, but let it go.”

“Hurt?” Heather laughed. “You are so naive. You think you know him.”

“I
do
know him.”

“I don’t think so. I know things about Reed and his family I’m sure he hasn’t told you.”

Peyton felt chills down her spine, something about that statement ringing true. “You came to my shop to tell me this? Do you realize how completely desperate you are?”

“What do you know about Richard Langston?” Heather asked.

“I’m not discussing Reed or his father with you.”

“Richard made quite a few headlines when Reed was younger. Did he tell you about those during your pillow talk?”

Peyton tried not to flinch, not wanting to give Heather any satisfaction, but knew she did. “Is this some desperate attempt to get Reed’s attention?”

“I may not have his attention at the moment,” Heather snapped, “but that’s only temporary.”

“I have his full, undivided attention, I assure you.”

Heather paused and smiled. “He always comes back to my bed.”

Peyton heard a nagging voice telling her that was possible. “Have you fucked any other girls in that bed lately? Because I don’t need to do that to keep his attention.”

Heather whipped the inside of her hand across Peyton’s face, striking quickly and hard. “I have your attention now, don’t I?”

Peyton staggered backwards then regained her balance, feeling a trickle of blood pour from her lip, the metal taste accelerating her heart rate, the lightning flashes storming back, attacking her body and mind, fierce and unrelenting, bringing her back to college, to the construction site, to the mounds of dirt. She dug her nails into her hand, trying to focus, only catching bits and pieces of Heather ranting. “Richard ... scandal.”

Peyton wiped the blood from her lip, wanting to slap the smug look off of Heather’s face but too sick to do it, too trapped in the past, the monster blocking her present. “Sex ... public ... humiliated.” Heather kept going with a warning that Reed belonged to her, just as she belonged to him, and no “little pie girl” could ever change that. “He didn’t deny he’s like his father, did he?” Before Peyton could respond, Heather turned and slithered away.

Peyton wiped her mouth and walked back inside, disgusted. She’d let Heather hit her and was too disabled — too broken — to fight back. She ran into the kitchen and vomited into the sink. Julia rushed towards her, offering her a towel, but Peyton swatted it away.

She fired off a text to Reed.
Meet me at my house. Now.
Then she turned to Julia and took off her apron. “Open up the shop. I’ve got to take care of something.”

* * *

Reed dropped his work and raced to her house. He was quickly learning his seemingly modest girlfriend could be quite demanding. She wanted him as much as he wanted her. And he loved it. He pulled in front of her house and walked up the steps, wondering what she possibly had in mind this time. They’d done oral every which way, but if she wanted to repeat something, that was fine with him. Or maybe she had something even better planned; perhaps she’d gone to the doctor for birth control or her period was light enough for sex. He wouldn’t mind if their first time was that way. They’d certainly waited long enough.

He blew through the front door, fully charged, surprised to find Quinn coming down the stairs. “I wouldn’t go up if I were you,” she cautioned.

“What? Peyton texted me to come over.”

Quinn continued down. “I still wouldn’t go up.”

“What the hell is going on? Is Peyton OK?”

“Not so much,” she said then disappeared into the kitchen, leaving Reed alone in the foyer, with no idea what was going on.

But he wasn’t about to take relationship advice from Quinn. She could save her words of wisdom for Bret. He stormed up the stairs, two steps at a time, and flung open the door to Peyton’s bedroom, finding an entirely different scene than the one he’d left. Peyton sat on her bed, with an iPad on her lap, her head down with tears flowing down her cheeks. She looked like a disaster, sad and angry, worse than even after Gram died. He took a careful step into her room.

“Baby, are you OK?” She didn’t answer. She didn’t even look up at him. He took another step in the room and thought he saw a cut on her bottom lip, crusted in dried blood. “Jesus, what’s wrong? What happened?” He took a few more steps, his head spinning in total confusion. Before he reached her, she flipped the iPad screen to him, his eyes landing on a headline from 15 years ago. Reed’s stomach flipped. He grabbed his neck and took a step back. “How did you ....”

“It doesn’t matter,” she said flatly. “You should have told me.”

Reed took a moment to consider her words. “I
should have
? You make it sound like I had some obligation to tell you. I’m not sure I’m required to tell you all the horrible, embarrassing, bad things about my family.”

Peyton looked at him in disbelief, pissed he’d dissected her words, that he had the nerve to get defensive at a time like this.