Learning to Drown by Sommer Marsden

out of the room. “It
was nice to meet you,” I called to Matthew.
    He tipped me a wink, rocked back on
the heels of his work boots. “Oh, don’t worry. I’ll be here when you come back.
I’m coming with you guys.”
    His eyes took stock of me and Lucas
watched his brother. There was a charge in the air I couldn’t quite put my
finger on. Just an inch shy of being eye to eye with his brother, Matthew
Crow’s hair was even longer and shaggier. His eyes were a lighter shade of
whiskey and the flecks within were blue. I’d bet when he was angry his eyes
turned the same color as dried leaves. His lips were a bit thinner, face a bit
more severe, his mouth wider. His voice was softer but had an underlying
cruelty.
    “Ember?”
    “Yes, sorry?”
    “Go get dressed, Ember,” Lucas said
and I bolted. My bare feet hissed on the hardwood like they were telling
secrets.
    Halfway up the steps I heard Matthew.
“So, bro, is that your new toy? I like her. She’s the best one yet. So, let’s
talk…”
    * * * *
    I must’ve passed muster because when I
came down both men gave me the once over. Both nodded with satisfaction. And
then Lucas scared the shit out of me, he said, “This is a big one. It’ll take
all three of us. So you, you are the bait and you ride with Matthew.”
    Shit.
    “Okay.” I said, dying inside.
    “How are the clothes? You look good.”
He dropped me a secretive look when he said it and my insides flooded with a
warm feeling that only he seemed to trigger.
    “They’re good. The jeans are a little
tight. But they fit,” I added, quickly. All the while my mind raced. I was to
ride with Matthew. What would I do? What would I say? How much did Matthew Crow
know about his brother’s sexual habits and had Lucas filled him in on me? I
hoped he had and I feared he had. It was a tie.
    My body felt torqued up, full of
nervous energy. Kinetic.
    “Too tight jeans? No such animal.”
Lucas offered his hand and I took it. “You and Matthew are decoys. This is
going to be difficult. The guy has a very nice red Mustang. He also has an
eagle eye and he parks his baby right outside his office window. That’s where
you and my brother come in. So tart it up. Take his cues. Got it?”
    I nodded even though I was having a
really hard time processing the plan. Decoy? Tart it up? My stomach bottomed
out. What if I fucked it up? Lucas grinned and smacked my ass hard while his
brother watched. Matthew shook his head in mock disgust. My already bruised
skin resonated with a dull pain that sharply turned to satisfaction. I sighed
before I  could catch myself.
    “Stop groping her and let’s go,”
Matthew said from the doorway. He did an up and down of me, grinning. From the
toes of my black boots to my smoothed blonde hair, wrangled into a messy pony tail.
“Nice,” he growled and then sauntered out the front door like he owned the
world.
    * * * *
    Lucas watched the look Matthew got
with Ember. He saw the way his brother tracked her every movement. It was the
same way the old man had taught them to track the animals when they were kids.
When the old man was around, that was. Even the most skittish deer could be
lulled into a peaceful death, he would say. Just be careful. Move slow. Be
quiet. No sudden movements. Patience was a virtue. Funny coming from a man who
thought that a good punch in the face could spur his eldest into action and
obedience. Either way, he had taught them well with tracking and hunting. And
that was where Matthew was headed. He had it in his mind that September was up
for grabs. He would be shocked to know that this time, Lucas wasn’t so keen on
his brother’s participation.
    Lucas gave him a pointed look and
Matthew looked down before stalking out onto the front porch like the king of
the world he thought himself to be. His half brother wasn’t used to being
denied. Especially by Lucas. And Lucas rarely kept things from Matthew that
Matthew wanted. A nasty side effect of having a fucked up