***NOTE*** This story is a part of my ongoing series called Trouble Texas Style (Night Walker's Woman, Tight Fittin' Jeans, One Night Stand, and Goodbye Earl). These are complex and interwoven tales that cross genres, including erotica, romance, and suspense.
I have kept them separate as opposed to hopping from character to character chronologically, as George R R Martin does with Ice & Fire. But I am keeping things sequential in the overall story arch. So, while it might theoretically be possible to read this as a standalone story, it is best appreciated in the overall context of the stories.
***TRIGGER WARNING*** This story contains strong content and controversial topics, including racism, rape trauma, and human trafficking. The purpose of these stories is certainly NOT to justify or glorify any of those things. There will be brief flashbacks but I am NOT including any graphic depictions of something that is a crime of violence and power, not a sex act. Please do NOT read if such things offend you, and if you or someone you care about are a survivor of rape trauma, please seek support.
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Mercy watched him as he bit off more of the energy bar. Actually, she could cook. A bit more than frozen pizza and ramen anyway. She might not be gourmet, but all the Reynold's girls had learned to pull their weight early. Cooking, cleaning, laundry, and as they got older, each had taken jobs to get by.
But the way this guy talked, their childhoods could not have been more different. Sure, they might both be bastards. But she would bet that he never knew that gnawing in the belly. Mama did what it took to make sure that her daughters had three meals a day; still, it was never quite enough to fill the belly and stop that gnawing.
Sure, she got the whole black in America thing. A bit too well. Not only had she overheard all the gossip when Elena and Brad started to date, but she had taken her niece shopping in College Station a couple of times.
It was the big city for them, a university town. You would think that people would be more broad-minded than Sebida. To be fair, most of them were. Still, she had gotten more than her fair share of sideways looks and whispers. It made her mad that people, complete strangers, did that to people. At least in Sebida, everyone knew everyone.
Mercy had trouble breathing as she watched the muscles in his throat move up and down as he finished off his bottle of water. She felt her nipples tighten and did not even want to think about the mess in her panties. She would most definitely need to change those before they got back on the road. Especially if they shared the makeshift bed.
She looked over at it as that debate raged in her mind once more. She was scared. Plain and simple. The idea of sharing her body with a man always frightened the bejesus out of her. Will was the first man that she had ever seriously considered doing that with, but what happened if she could not follow through? What if she had another of those flashbacks? Would he hate her? Hell, the one that she did not want to consider, would he even stop if she asked?
Then there were the practicalities. Condoms were one thing that was not in her bugout bag. And as one of the Vestal Virgins, she was not the pill or other contraceptives. Not to even mention sexually transmitted infections. Those photographs in high school were enough to make anyone cringe.
She finished her energy bar and drained the last of the water. But she knew none of that mattered. She was going to do it. Or at least try to. At the ripe old age of thirty-two, Mercedes Reba Reynolds was going to get her V-card punched. Or she hoped so anyway.
"It's probably too early to call your mother or sister. Do you want to get a couple of hours sleep first? Then give it a try?"
Mercy bit her lower lip; she could take the easy way out. Get some sleep like he said, wakeup, talk to Mama, then jump his bones. The problem with that was she knew the longer she procrastinated, the harder this would be. She smiled, well, that might not be so bad in some ways.
But she was sure of this decision. She had waited all these years for a man that was worth the risk, that did more for her, and got her hotter than any 'book boyfriend.' That was not going to change.
And frankly, she was still shaken by Kerr's words. Hell, it was more than his words. She had come close to vomiting when he touched her. The other stuff that he said to her, that did not bear thinking of.
The truth was that tomorrow, they were going straight into danger. What if the things that Kerr said were true? What if this 'brother' saw her value only in terms of what he could get for her body? Hell, what if this Diego turned her back over to Kerr? And the idea of ending up a prostitute? NO!
Her body was hers to decide what she did with it. Her virginity, especially, was hers to give to the person that she chose. Not a commodity to be auctioned to the highest bidder.
For all this guy's sweet words about the future, they might never have anything more than this one night. And if she ever faced the things that Mama had, Mercy wanted one sweet memory. A place where her mind could escape when her body could not.
She felt those tears rising again. And yes, a tiny bit of fear. Even if she technically knew precisely how this was done, hell, had written more love scenes than you could count, this was still going somewhere she never had before.
She jumped in; she had always preferred cannon-balling into the deep end over wading into anything. "Or we could find something else to occupy our time and tire us out before those calls?" She hoped the look she gave him passed for seductive. That, too, was not something she had any experience with.
Will leaned back with a sexy smile on those sexier lips, "Did the little librarian have something specific in mind? Chaucer? Shakespeare? Milton? I know I bet you prefer Jane Austen for your bedtime stories."
She tossed the bottle aside and slid across the dirt floor until she straddled his lap. Mercy wrapped her arms around his neck and drew him closer, zeroing in on those kiss-ass-able lips. "I was thinking more along the lines of those trashy ebooks with naked people on the cover. Maybe even the ones behind Kingdle's porn wall?"
She lowered her head and began to nibble on his bottom lip as her hips dry-humped what she was almost sure was a damned impressive erection. Hopefully, she would find out for herself soon.
***
