Shelly Laurenston: The Mane Event

“Her and Sissy Mae,” Ricky Lee added.

“Sissy Mae would set ’em up and Ronnie Lee would knock ’em down.” Reece laughed. “They still sell her T-shirts in Japan and Korea.”

Her face red with embarrassment, Ronnie Lee walked away from them all and threw herself into one of the plush recliners.

“What was their motto again, Ricky Lee?” Rory asked, his hands held in front of a now-roaring fire in the fireplace.

“A rich boy and his money will soon be parted.”

“That’s right. Sissy Mae would find some rich boy with no sense and a hot car. Challenge him to a race, and the brain surgeon over there would race him. By the time they were done with him, they’d have the winnings, the poor sap’s car, and sometimes real estate.”

“Which they’d sell and invest. Sissy Mae can turn a dime into ten thousand dollars in an hour.”

“That She-wolf does have a gift.”

“I don’t want to discuss this anymore,” Ronnie snarled.

Nodding, Rory stood up. “She’s right. Might as well save the really good info for tonight’s dinner.”

The three brothers headed for the hallway, but Rory stopped and asked, “How did you two get here so fast anyway?”

“Took his daddy’s jet.”

“Hey!” Ricky cheered. “Did you hear that, boys? We’re taking a jet back to New York City.”

“Who the hell invited you?” Ronnie practically yelled.

“Ronnie Lee, you can’t expect us to go coach now that you’ve snagged yourself a rich boyfriend.”

Ronnie flashed her fangs at Ricky and Rory stepped between them. Staring down at his sister, he said, “Be nice, Rhonda Lee, or I’ll have to tell Momma how the barn burned down that time.”

Her eyes narrowed. “You swore you’d never tell.”

Her brother snorted and winked at Brendon. “Rory Lee Reed in a jet. Has a nice ring to it, don’t it?”

Laughing, the three brothers walked out, and by the time Brendon turned back to Ronnie, she already had one of the windows open and was halfway out of it.

He rolled his eyes and grabbed her, dragging her back into the house.

She struggled in his arms. “I won’t stay!”

Brendon spun her around and kissed her. Within seconds, they were practically tearing each other’s clothes off.

“Rhonda Lee!” her mother bellowed from the kitchen. “Get that ass in here right now, little miss!”

Startled, the couple jumped apart.

Ronnie pulled her shirt back down while Brendon adjusted the front of his jeans.

“What is it, Momma?” Ronnie Lee called out, somehow keeping her panting under control.

“Y’all come into this kitchen and keep me company while your daddy and the boys hunt down that boar for dinner.”

Like a teenager, Ronnie rolled her eyes. “But—”

“Now, Ronnie Lee.”

“Fine!”

Stamping her foot, Ronnie started to storm off, but Brendon grabbed her arm, pulling her back a bit.

“Don’t start a fight, Ronnie.”

“Me? She started it—”

“Ronnie.”

“Fine. You wanna side with her, go ahead. Hope you enjoy sleeping alone tonight, hoss.”

She turned and started to storm off again when Brendon said to her retreating form, “I packed the skirt.”

Ronnie froze in the doorway, her body tense, fingers gripping the door frame. After several moments, Ronnie turned and whispered, “Keep it down, Brendon Shaw. If my momma finds out what we did on your parents’ couch she’ll skin me alive.”

Flowing right into their little game, Brendon moved in front of her and placed his hands on the archway, his arms and body leaning over Ronnie Lee. If he remembered correctly, he did the same thing to her at the hospital. It was a signature Shaw move he often used in high school. “I promised I wouldn’t tell and I won’t. But I need to see you tonight.”

“I…I can’t. I have a calculus test next week.”

“Meet me, Ronnie.” He leaned in closer, his lips brushing against her forehead. “Promise you’ll meet me.”

“Where?”

“My car. Tonight.”

She swallowed. “Your car?”

“Yeah. I wanna see if those boots look as good against the inside roof of my car as they do against this floor.”

Ronnie looked honestly surprised for several moments before a beautiful grin spread across her face. She shook her head and instantly went back to their game. “Are we gonna do what we did…before?”

“Did you like what we did before?”

Looking appropriately embarrassed and turned on at the same time, she nodded. “I…I did.”

“Then, yes. We’ll do what we did before. As many times as you want.”

“Rhonda Lee Reed. Get your ass in here now!”

Her grin returned. “Coming, Momma,” she called back. She looked at Brendon, sizing him up. “At least I better be. Tonight. In that car.”

Brendon laughed. “That I definitely promise.” He brushed a finger across her cheek. “Love you, Ronnie Lee.”

She went up on her toes and kissed his lips. “I love you, too. Now,” she grabbed his hand with her own, intertwining their fingers, “let’s go have some fun molesting each other when my family ain’t lookin’.”

Grinning, Brendon let Ronnie lead him to the warm Evans-Reed family kitchen. “Rhonda Lee Reed, I absolutely love how you think.”