Free vittanos willow by Aliyah Burke Page B

gonna make you pay for that,” he warned.
    “ Ohhh , I’m trembling.”
    “You will be,” he vowed.
    A tremor rocketed through her body as she envisioned Osten
    naked in her bed. “Don’t make promises you can’t keep.”
    “I’m not. I’ll be there.”
    “Great!” CJ squeezed his arm and headed to her vehicle. “See
    you then.”
    “Bye!” he hollered at her retreating back.

    Chantoya slumped heavily in her seat as the familiar and wel-
    come structure came into view. Her body wasn’t used to jarring around
    inside of a tractor cab, yet she rolled her shoulders and worked the
    double clutch and downshifted as she pulled into Dezarae’s driveway.
    It was about two in the morning on Monday and she had to be at school
    bright and early. At least she had gotten some tests graded while Dez
    had taken her turns at the wheel.
    CJ had just the running lights on so it wouldn’t hit the house
    once she parked. Her eyes landed on exhausted slumbering Dezarae.
    They had been extremely busy at the shows, and now she was catching
    up on her missed sleep. And though Chantoya was tired as well, she
    knew that Dez was worse off.
    Letting the cab idle, CJ smiled as the porch light came on and
    Ross stepped out into the cold night. There was still about five inches of
    snow left on the ground from that storm that had passed through. He
    pulled his jacket closer around his frame and moved off the porch
    towards the truck.

    Vittano's Willow
    65
    “Hey,” CJ said to Dez. “We’re home. Your hubby is about to
    reach the truck. Wake up.”
    Dezarae sat up and rubbed her eyes in the cab light that CJ had
    turned on. “Wow, you did drive the rest of the way. I’m sorry.”
    “Hey, you kept me company with your snores,” CJ teased.
    “Don’t worry about it. I could tell how exhausted you were.”
    “You did as much work as I did. If not more.” Dez undid her
    belt as Ross walked up to the door.
    “But I don’t have kids at home. I’m younger and therefore have
    more energy.” CJ jumped as Dez reached across the truck and smacked
    her in the arm. “Ouch!”
    “Serves you right.” The passenger door opened and Ross Con-
    nelly pulled himself up and kissed his wife. The passion between them
    was so intense; CJ felt like an intruder.
    Chantoya looked away saddened she had no one waiting for
    her. Shrugging, she turned off the rig, grabbed her bag, and jumped out
    of the cab. Without waiting for either of them to climb out, she headed
    for her brother’s Escalade that was parked at the Connelly’s home.
    She unlocked the vehicle, tossed in her bag, and then started the
    truck. Making sure the defrost was on, CJ shut the door to keep what
    little heat there was inside and went to the back for the scraper. Tug-
    ging on her gloves, she began to clean off the frost from the outside of
    her windows.
    “Hey, are you just going to leave?” Dezarae asked as she mate-
    rialized beside her.
    “I don’t think I was needed for what you two were doing.” Her
    reply was easy and tried to hide her pain of being alone.
    Ross settled his arm around her, pulled her in for a quick hug. “I
    don’t know. Two women could be a lot of fun for me.” He grunted
    when his wife punched him in the side. “I’m sorry, CJ. I didn’t mean to
    make you feel uncomfortable. You are more than welcome to stay the
    night.” He dropped his arm from her body.
    Shaking her head, CJ continued to work on her windows.
    “Thanks, but I have to get home.” When Dez stepped in close with a
    question on her face, she continued, “Spend some time with your
    hubby. I’ll call you later.” She kissed her on the cheek. “Love you. Bye,
    Ross.” Not giving them a chance to argue more, CJ climbed in her
    vehicle and drove away. By the time she made it home, the car was
    warm. Quickly she went inside her lonely apartment and to bed.

E i g h t
    His eyes narrowed as Chantoya climbed out of her vehicle. At
    least she was alone instead of having