Chapter 10 Butterfly Kisses
Mia's voice rang through the house, "Breakfast is ready. If you want food, get your asses out of bed!"
Vince groaned and looked at the clock 7:13am. "Fuck." He groaned softly burying his face in his "Jenna" pillow. He thought of what today would bring and sighed. Today he and Dom would tell the team. Today everyone's loyalty would be tested.
Vince took a deep breath savoring the scent that permeated his pillow. Running the plan through his head again, Vince resigned himself to the fact that this may be as close as he would ever get to waking up beside Jenna.
The plan was dangerous, for all of them, but the role he had assumed was damn near deadly. Stupid, even. But it was the only chance they had. Tran wasn't going to wait much longer.
Vince sighed and groaned as he rolled out of bed. He pulled on his jeans and headed for the bathroom. He took a piss, brushed his teeth and splashed his head and upper chest with cool water. Wiping off with a towel, he scrubbed his hair mostly dry and left it sticking up at all angles. He pulled a white beater on and left the bathroom. Stopping by his room to put his boots on and grab his wallet, he climbed the stairs two at a time.
Most everyone was at the table already. Mia was still at the stove preparing plates. Vince grabbed a cup of coffee before taking a seat.
Dom looked at Vince "You hung over?"
"Nah, just tired."
Jenna came down the stairs just then, and Vince couldn't take his eyes off her. She was freshly showered, her hair still damp. She was barefoot, pink toenail polish. She wore short cutoffs, slung low on her hips, and a red spaghetti strap tank. Vince smiled as she headed straight to the coffee pot for a cup, giving Mia a light bump with her hip as a silent hello.
The coffee cups were in an overhead cabinet, Jenna had to stand on her tiptoe and stretch to reach. As she stretched her tank top rode up, revealing the red straps of her G-string thong underwear sitting just above the waist of her cutoffs. The three straps came together in a T-shape where a small jewel-encrusted butterfly joined them together.
Jenna was unaware of the show she was providing the men at the table, until she heard Leon choke, and Vince growl. Still reaching for the coffee cup that was just barely out of her reach, Jenna looked over her shoulder in time to see Letty smack Dom in the back of the head. Leon was trying to get his breath; Jesse was snickering and slapping Leon's back vigorously. Vince had turned around completely in his seat to look at her, his eyes were blazing with heat, and they were glued to her ass.
Jenna quickly turned back to the cabinet and grinned evilly. She stretched high again and gave a little shimmy, thinking only of what Vince's reaction would be. The sound of a chair sliding across the linoleum was all the warning she got. Suddenly Vince's hard body was pressed tightly up against her as he reached over her head for the coffee cup.
Vince didn't even have to stretch to reach the coffee cups; he just leaned his entire body against her and casually reached over her head to grab it.
"You trying to make your brother cough up a lung?" Vince growled low in her ear, as he pressed her hips into the counter with his own. And then he was gone, leaving her clinging to the counter trying not to let on how weak her knees really were.
Jenna turned and walked to the table, she took the seat between Vince and Dom, facing Leon and Letty. She tried to ignore how, Dom and Letty were silently arguing, with glares and rude gestures. Leon had recovered his breath and sat down again, but was now glaring at Vince. Jesse was farther down the table shoveling Coco Puffs in his mouth and watching Dom and Letty.
Mia handed Vince and Jenna plates filled with eggs, waffles, and sausage. Vince smiled at Mia and said "Thanks, Mia."
Jenna smiled and gave Mia her thanks, trying not to shiver at Vince's low hoarse voice rumbling so close to her.
"You're welcome guys." Mia said moving to pick up her purse, keys and backpack. "I'm off guys. See you this afternoon."
"Mia I need to talk to you." Dom said standing.
"Not now, Dom, I'm gonna be late." Mia moved to the big man, who automatically dipped his head so she could kiss his cheek.
Dom nodded slightly, "After class then. It's important, Mia."
Mia frowned slightly, tilting her head to the side as she studied Dominic, "Yeah, okay. I'll stop by. After class."
Mia left and Dom sat back down and continued eating, ignoring the curious looks Letty was giving him.
The table was silent for a long time, as they ate, almost everyone focused solely on their food. Everyone, except Leon, who sat watching Jenna eat.
Jenna finally gave up ignoring Leon stare and met his eyes. Leon was leaned back, slouching in his chair, playing with the tooth-pick sticking out the corner of his mouth. He looked Jenna in the eye for a minute, before his gaze slid to Vince. He watched Vince shovel food in his mouth, and then looked back at his sister.
"Something on your mind Le?" Jenna asked, unable to take the suspense.
Finally Leon seemed to make a decision; he sat up, dropping his chair back to all four legs. Silently, he pulled out his wallet and slid a credit card across the table to Jenna.
Everyone stopped eating to watch.
Jenna just looked at the credit card. Finally she picked it up and looked at Leon, "What's this for Le?"
"Get Mia to take you shopping. You need some new clothes." Leon said, as if that explained everything.
Jenna laid the card back on the table and slid it back toward Leon. "I don't need any new clothes Le. Thanks anyway."
Leon pushed the card back at her and spoke very low, "Well if those shorts are any indication then, yes you do. Dad would have never let you run around dressed like that. I know Mom is different now, but maybe if she… if someone had told you before that you needed t...well… doesn't matter…just maybe things would have been easier…or something."
No one moved. The silence was so complete; the hum of the refrigerator seemed deafening.
Jenna stared at Leon, feeling her anger hit a roiling boil. When she started speaking her voice was low, soft and dangerous. She slowly stood form her seat, palms on the table, leaning in toward Leon.
"William Leonard Jacobs are you trying to imply that I dress like a slut? Is that what you are saying? Are you saying that you think all that shit with John was my fault? You think I teased him? You think I was asking for it? Let me tell you something. I wore baggy sweats and shit for the past 6 months trying to hide from that prick. It didn't do any damn good. So I am done hiding! I didn't do anything wrong! And I am damn sure not going to spend the rest of my life hiding my body, because it might turn some guy on.
I wear clothes that make me feel good. Besides my clothes are not that revealing. Hell look at what Letty is wearing. Her tank top barely covers her boobs, her belly is completely bare, and those cargoes she has on, are riding way lower than my shorts. And you can see just as much of her underwear as you can mine. Are you going to call her a slut too?"
Everyone was in shock. Leon sat there with his mouth opening and closing, unable to make a sound. Jenna grabbed her dishes and stalked to the sink before she slammed out the back door.
Slowly, Vince stood, picked up his plate and cup, looked at Leon and growled "Dumb ass." He also dropped his stuff in the sink on his way out the back door.
Leon looked around the table for help. Jesse suddenly found his soggy cereal fascinating and buried his nose in the bowl. Leon turned to Dom, but suddenly Letty was in his face.
"Did you just call me a slut, Le?" she snarled inches from his nose. Again Leon's mouth opened and closed a few times, but the only thing that came out was the tooth pick. It fell to the floor unnoticed.
Suddenly Letty started laughing, she slapped Leon on the back and said, "Fuck gimme that card, I'll go buy the girl some potato sacks. Maybe then the men around here will stop drooling all over themselves." She cut her eyes at Dom and the teasing left her eyes. "It's fucking embarrassing." And on that note Letty jumped up from the table, grabbed her keys and headed out the front door.
Dom watched her go with a slight shake of his head. The he turned to watch Leon, who was still trying to figure out what just happened.
After a few minutes Dom figured Le needed some advice, "Leon," he sighed, "you can't go saying shit like that to women."
"I was just trying to help. I mean it has to make her uncomfortable, all those guys looking at her. Hitting on her. She is just a kid. She's too young to dress like that." Leon defended himself.
"Le, Jenna dresses perfectly fine. In fact her clothes are a lot less revealing than what Letty or Mia normally wear. And she is not just a kid. She'll be 17 in a few days. She is a teenage girl. She is hot. And I guarantee you, getting hit on and having guys drool over her is a huge ego boost." Dom chuckled a bit, before he continued, "You are new to this whole big brother bit. I mean the last time you actually saw Jenna she was probably a skinny little kid, all knees and elbows, still playing with dolls and toy cars. Now suddenly here she is; a beautiful sexy woman. I know she is only 16, but from what I have seen, it seems like she has had to take care of herself for a while now. Combine her maturity with that body? For the most part you have a full-grown woman on your hands. You gotta stop treating her like a kid, and for gods sake stop embarrassing her in front of other people like that."
Leon looked at Dom like he was crazy. "Dom, she is a kid. She is not a woman yet. And no kid should be walking around with her underwear showing like that. Those cutoffs are even shorter than the shorts she wore yesterday." Agitated, Leon got out of his chair to pace the kitchen floor.
"Hell, if I didn't know who she was, if I just met her at the races or something, I would be all over her. I don't want guys looking at my baby sis like that."
Leon paused at the sink, looking out the window. Jenna and Vince sat side-by side on the picnic table, their backs toward the house. Leon gestured out the window even though he knew the other couldn't see. "And Vince! Have you even seen V around her? He is living up to his nickname, panting after her like he does. If he touches her, I swear to god I am going to have to kill him, Dawg."
Do shook his head and said, "Alright, first of all relax about V. Yes he wants her. That was obvious from the moment he met her. But he knows how young she is, he won't push it. Flirt shamelessly, yes, but he won't do anything to hurt her. You, on the other hand? You may find yourself nose to nose with Ol' Coyote if you keep giving her shit like this."
Leon sighed and sat back down in Vince's abandoned chair. Dom leaned his elbows on the table and spoke softly to Leon.
"The point I am trying to make is Jenna is already the person she is going to be. She came to you for help. That means she trusts you to take care of her. But at the same time, she's trying to find her place here, figure out where she fits. If you bitch about every little thing, she's gonna stop listening to you completely. You need to learn to pick your battles. Things like staying in school, no drugs, no sex, no breaking curfew; those are the fights you have to win. And believe it or not she already knows that. She's already prepared to follow those rules. Doesn't mean she won't test you, cause she will, just to find that line. The one she knows not to cross. But she needs to win sometimes too. So what is more important, the longer shorts or making sure she's not out blowing some guy behind the bleachers?"
Leon gasp. "Dom that is my fucking sister you are talking about!"
Dom laughed "How many girls have ever given you head, Le? Huh?" Leon just shrugged, still looking pissed
"Each and every one of those girls that wrapped their lips around your dick, is somebody's sweet little girl. And I guarantee you, a few of them had older brothers that thought, their little sister didn't know what a dick was, man."
Leon scrubbed his face with his hands "Fuck Dom. You keep talking; I may never get hard again."
"Good I think you see my point. Let her dress the way she wants. And just beat the shit out of the guy behind the bleachers. She thinks, she has you wrapped around her little finger and actually listens to you on occasion. Problem solved."
Dom gave a huge shit-eating grin, "That's how I handle Mia."
Leon and Jesse stared disbelievingly at Dom. Suddenly, Jesse started snickering, trying not to laugh. Soon all three of them were laughing heartily.
As their laughter faded, Dom reluctantly decided to change the focus of their talk. It was better to do this without Letty for now. Dom would take her somewhere private later. She tended to argue, loudly. Dom didn't need that happening in front of the team.
Dom cleared his throat and looked at the two younger men across from him. It felt wrong to drag them into this. He was supposed to protect his family, his team. He and Vince, together they took the big risks. Now, because they made a bad decision, the entire team was in danger. And this time, he and Vince couldn't fix it by themselves. This time they needed the team.
"Now, we have something else to talk about. Business. And since Jenna and Mia are out of the house, now is as good a time as any, I guess." Dom sighed heavily and began to explain.
Vince found Jenna sitting on the picnic table. Slowly, Vince walked toward her, thinking of how beautiful she was and how much he just wanted to wrap his arms around her and protect her. Again, the thought occurred to him that his time to do that may well be running out. The job, the Trans, and the law. The odds were against him.
Vince sat beside her not saying anything for a few minutes. Jenna was fuming, muttering under her breath, but Vince couldn't understand what she was saying. So he just sat there, elbows on his knees, chewing on the inside of his jaw. 'Would it really be so wrong, just to be close to her, to hold her, to kiss her?' he thought.
Jenna quieted down and Vince cut his eyes sideways at her. Wanting to take her mind off the breakfast conversation, Vince channeled his inner third grader and bumped her shoulder softly with his. A second later she bumped him back harder. Vince grinned, still not looking at her. He bumped her shoulder again, harder. This time instead of bumping back, Jenna turned and used both hands to shove him sideways. She sent him staggering off the table. Vince laughed out loud and turned to see Jenna grinning like an idiot.
Suddenly, he felt light hearted and care-free.
"Oh I see. That's how it is, huh. I come out here to comfort you and you take your frustrations out on me?" Vince tried to sound hurt, but the shit-eating grin ruined the effect.
Jenna snorted and said "Ha! Comfort me? You started it, ya big brute."
Vince moved closer, placing one hand one each side of her hips, using the table to support his weight as he leaned in close. Inches from her lips he whispered "Did not."
Jenna leaned forward a fraction and whispered, "Did too." As her lips pursed to form the word 'too' their lips almost touched.
Vince breathed her in, vanilla and spice. And in that instant, he lost the fight. He surrendered.
Vince smiled.
"Well if I started it, then I better finish it," he whispered, embracing his fate.
Vince kissed her hard, shoving his tongue into her mouth, the force of it forcing her to lean backward. He wasn't surprised when she met his lips and tongue with equal fever and force. They were starving for each other. Jenna grabbed him by the hair at the back of his head, and held on tight, not giving him the chance to pull back until she was good and ready.
The kiss seemed to go on forever. It seemed to fuse their souls. Vince swore he could feel Jenna's essence creeping into every corner of his being, becoming part of him. Strangely he welcomed it.
The kiss was incredible. Jenna pulled herself closer to Vince, holding on tightly, afraid he would push her away at any moment. She felt his hands grasp her hips, pulling her closer to him. His rough fingertips traced the line of her panties, back to the center of her hips, caressing her little bejeweled butterfly.
Reality began to intrude, worries over being caught, forced them slowly apart. Jenna eased up on the pressure to the back of his head, but didn't release his hair. They were both breathing hard, and Vince was hard and throbbing in his jeans. He had to close his eyes to block out the site of Jenna's lips, reddened and already swelling from the force of the kiss.
The sound of hysterical laughter coming from the kitchen caused the couple to jump apart guiltily, both looking toward the windows and door for any sign they had been caught. When Leon didn't fly out the door looking for Vince's blood right away, Vince figured they were in the clear. He took a deep breath and sat next to Jenna again, making sure to leave a little space between them.
Jenna looked at Vince, noticing the distance he placed between them, she then looked back at the house, before she dropped her chin to her chest and sighed. "You gonna blame that on my shorts too," she muttered? Vince heard her and chuckled, the sound rumbling deep in is chest.
"No. I am gonna blame that on my pillow."
Jenna froze and blushed guiltily. Vince grinned.
They sat in silence for a minute. Vince cleared his throat and said, "We've got races tonight." Jenna looked at him, but Vince kept his gaze fixed on his boots as he continued, "Will you ride with me?"
Jenna suddenly felt a change in the air. Like something important and life changing had just happened and she missed it. Jenna looked at Vince, wide eyed. He was still staring at his boots, waiting.
"That means something…doesn't it." Jenna whispered, trying to figure out what was happening.
"Yeah." Vince turned his blue eyes on hers and she saw it. A promise of more. A determination and an invitation. She hadn't seen that in his eyes, since her first day with the team.
Jenna nodded, "Okay."