By the Horns

"Yeah, but your knee," she said and looked at the garish wound.

Mike let the shorts go so it fell back over his leg. He walked to the counter she was at and put his hand on hers.

"I was in the SEALs for four years. That was a great point of my life. I don't have any regrets as I did what I set out to do from an early age," he said in a serious tone.

"You wanted to be in the SEALs?" she asked.

Mike simply nodded his head. He walked to the sink with his cup after he took hers and rinsed them out leaving her to think about what he had said. Once the cups were rinsed he set them on the counter and went to the restroom. Nadine thought about his knee and her husbands. Trevor had suffered a similar injury a long time ago. While Trevor had the small scars behind his leg from the surgery it was a clean close. Mike's was just disturbing to look at. The way it looked like his knee was just hanging was terrifying. As she pondered the new information of her neighbor she heard the toilet flush and the door close. Mike walked up to her with barely any limp at all.

"Well Nadine, I gotta get. Still have some stuff to get from the old house and bring here," he explained. "Maybe we can pick up on this either later today or tomorrow?" he asked.

"Sure," Nadine said pleasantly and walked to the door.

Mike followed her out after grabbing the truck keys. Once they exited he locked the door and walked her down the driveway. He shook her hand and smiled at her appreciatively.

"Thanks for the help Nadine. Hope to see you again," he said in a upbeat tone.

"You too Mike," she said and walked away.

Mike took a second to watch her walk away and was impressed. She seemed like a sweetie and that made a grin break out on his face. Once he was sure she made it to her house he went to the truck. He got in and put it in drive. "Affliction" by Solid State Logic pumped through the speakers as he pulled out and onto the road. The truck picked up speed and Mike found his way back to the freeway. The hour long trip back to LA was ahead of him, but he didn't care. He just hoped the kids and Melina got the stuff packed like he asked.

Nadine walked back in her house and the AC hit her right away. Mike's house was a nice two story one that had a lot of space. The layout of hers was a single story three bedroom house. The last bedroom was for any children they might have and the spare for an office. As the cool air hit her she realized his house didn't have the AC going. She sighed as she felt nasty and went to the shower. The nice warm water hit her body as she admired her curves. As she washed her body she couldn't help but think of Mike's tattoos and it bothered her a bit. She shook away the thoughts of her new neighbor and finished her shower after washing her thick hair.

Once done she dried off and left her hair to go natural. The cute curls came out and she looked at herself in the mirror and the sight reminded her of her grandmother. Nana would always have her hair out naturally and it looked like a wild Afro. She took a hairband and tied it over the front of her hair then pushed it down so the hair only stood out behind her. She dried off and got in to some comfy clothes. Once she was set she went down to the kitchen and looked at what they needed from the store. She made the list and as she was leaving Trevor pulled in to the parking space. Seeing him home at a reasonable hour made her feel better.

He came in and looked no the worse for wear. She actually walked up and hugged him. Trevor returned the hug and saw the new hairdo she was sporting.

"That's cute," he said looking at the hairstyle.

"Thanks baby," she said in a chipper tone, "So how was your day?" she asked after he patted her back.

"It's not done, I'm just home for lunch," he explained.

"Oh, well I was about to hit the store, anything you want?" she asked.

"Naw, just the normal stuff," he replied and went to the fridge. He got out the leftover meatloaf and made himself a sandwich.

Nadine got his chips out of the cupboard and handed them to him. He took them and plopped in the chair. As he began eating she poured him a glass of juice and left him to his meal. As she was about to leave she remembered Mike's offer.

"Oh, we have new neighbors," she said looking back at him.

"Oh yeah?" he asked with a mouth full of chips.

"Yes a family is moving in at the empty house in the middle of the end," she said pointing out the window at the house.

"Oh yeah? What kid of people are they?" he asked.

"A production and investor and his family," she said.

"I meant white or black?" he asked.

"He's white," she said softly.

"Great, more white people," he said derisively.

"He seems nice enough," she explained.

"I'm sure," he spat and went back to his lunch.

Nadine knew that Trevor had a thing about white people as it was a white doctor that gave him the news of his situation. He never forgave the man and it seemed to seep into his blood an intolerance for white men. As he ate Nadine gave him the last of the news.

"Well he invited the block to a party at his house to meet the neighbors. I thought we could go?" she asked.

"Sure," he said almost disinterested by the announcement.

Nadine wisely dropped the issue and got her purse. As she was leaving she called back to him.

"I'll see you when you get home."

Trevor waved his hand and went back to his lunch. The wave was very uncaring at best and she walked to her car. She got in and let her mind wander for a minute. She put the keys in the ignition, turned it over, and pulled out into the street. As she drove off to the store Nadine sighed. She turned on the radio and her favorite song came on. She bopped to the sounds of Cee Lo Green's "F*** You". The first time she heard the song she was laughing. As it got to her favorite part she sang along to it. The happy distraction got her to the store and in good spirits as she loaded up on her supplies.

Driving back she found Trevor had already left and the house was empty. She put away the groceries and as she was looking out the window she saw the moving truck pull back up. This time it wasn't alone. A very nice Mustang GT pulled up as did an SUV. Mike was driving the truck and pulled it into the space. As he got out another man got out with him. The man, like Mike, was a huge man. The only difference from Mike was he was a black man that had long dreads. His body rippled like a panther as his muscles tore into the shirt he was wearing. The SUV opened and three other big men got out. All were tall and well built. The only thing that was off was the car that opened and a stunningly beautiful Latina got out. As she walked up another SUV pulled up and a group of four kids, three boys and a girl, got out along with another well built black man.

She watched from her window as the group gathered in the garage for a minute to go over strategy. After a brief talking they opened the truck and got to it. Nadine decided to go back over and help like she said she would. She slipped her shoes back on and walked across the street again. As she walked up she saw Mike coming back out from the house again. He smiled and waved to her as she walked up for the second time.

"Well now, helping me two times in one day," Mike said smiling warmly.

"I like your ice tea," Nadine joked making him chuckle.

As Mike chuckled the men came back out and suddenly Nadine felt very small. All of the men were six foot or taller. All of them also had very strong builds showing they were no stranger to the gym. And all of them were looking at her with an appreciative eye. As she was about to feel too much like a piece of meat Mike altered their focus.

"Not payin' you mugs to look at the pretty neighbor now am I?" he said in an authoritative voice making the men laugh and break to get more things from the truck.

Nadine watched the men grab the heavy looking sofas and cabinets from the truck with little effort. She watched doubly impressed as they hauled them into the house in a rapid manner. Mike looked back into the truck, found some boxes and loaded them into his arms. Nadine followed suit with a few and followed him in. Inside the couches and chairs started to make the house feel more full. They were all of an older, but more chic style. The entertainment stand was taking shape as was the kitchen. There was likely more things to put in, but she could tell it was likely going to be a month or so before the house was organized.

As they unpacked and shoved things to their proper places Nadine was introduced to the group. The woman she had seen was the mother of his children named Melina. Melina stood five five and her body was amazing to look at. She was lean in all the right places, but her curves made her look bad. Her thick, curly hair was streaked with highlights giving her a very alluring look. Her eyes were also something that Nadine had seen before. They were large and round adding an innocence to her. Her sister had similar eyes to her mother and that's what Melina's eyes reminded her of.

The others were Chad, a large white man with bulging muscles and a shaved head. Terrance the black man with the dreads, Marcus was the other black man. He was bald and had a powerful frame. The last man was Davis another white man who was very tall at six five, but his body was cut in a nice tone. The men all seemed very nice and helpful as they got things unpacked and into place. Mike seemed to naturally lead them as well as the kids. She noted that the kids were hard at work placing things in their right places as well as fixing up the bathrooms. The house was the biggest on the block with six bedrooms and they were all quickly filled.

The backyard also started to take shape as Mike had a pool guy show up while they were moving the stuff to clean and treat the pool for him. His backyard due to it's position was huge. As Nadine unpacked she found that there was likely dogs that were coming as well. She saw the food bowls were large and there was even a few mats for big dogs to rest on. Mike had them spaced out in the yard and house accordingly. Nadine looked on after a while and saw Mike was busy loading a bunch of file cabinets with the other men into the small corner room. She walked to them and her eyes bulged as she saw a series of wall safes and cabinets loaded into the windowless room. As she stood in the door Mike saw her and decided to put her to work.

"Hey, you gonna help or stand there looking pretty?" he joked.

"Oh...um, yeah what do you need?" she asked.

"In the back of the truck is a series of plastic containers, can you get them?" he asked as the men and him muscled a heavy looking cabinet against the wall.

"Sure," Nadine replied and went back to the truck.

As she got there Melina was in the truck looking through a few boxes still loaded. Nadine saw the plastic bins he requested and walked to them.

"Excuse me," Nadine asked politely.

Melina hadn't seen Nadine coming and jumped at the sudden words.

"Oh god you scared me," Melina laughed.

"I'm sorry," Nadine apologized.

"No it's OK, meja," she replied.

Nadine heard the Spanish and smiled. Her next phrase made Melina smile in a pleasant manner.

"Si habla Espanol," she said cheerfully.

"I figured you would," Melina said laughing.

"My mom's Dominican, I had to learn," Nadine said smiling.

"I'm Costa Rican, so it comes to me naturally," Melina replied laughing.

The two shared a conversation about a few small things for a short time. From music likes, to where to get good food, to a nice saloon Nadine knew about that specialized in natural hair. They chatted in Spanish for a while as well while they moved the boxes Mike asked for as well as the rest. The rest of the time was a fun time as the ladies called out for dinner for everyone. They decided on a great Tex Mex place that Nadine suggested. The bill was large, but when Nadine saw Mike open his wallet her eyes got bigger than she could imagine. Inside was crammed full with hundred dollar bills. As much as her eyes widened at that they widened more when the guys came out and began to devour their food.

Everyone ate their meal with a lot of conversation. The guys talked about how to improve the house. The kids had their own conversation about school and other topics leaving Melina and Nadine to talk about the neighborhood and how things were going. The good times of the meal came to a close when it was getting dark out and Nadine had to go. As she left she took one last look at the house and the happy times going on inside. She sighed a bit as she went back to her own house.

The time seemed to crawl for Nadine over the next week. Since the time spent helping Mike and his family move in she had to sleep alone five times that week. Trevor got paid and his check was a bit more than normal, but not as much as it should have been. Nadine wasn't about to bother him about the money as the bills were caught up and they were still doing fine. As the weekend crawled up Nadine's workload got easier at the office. She was training with her boss and it looked very much like she was indeed going to get the position. As she showed up on Friday the office her world took a step back. The position was filled by someone from another office who was the manager's friend. The excuses she got made her angry, but the district manager stopped by and made her day by saying there was another position opening and she would get it.

Saturday came slowly for Nadine and she woke up alone again as was becoming normal. The couch was comfortable, but she wished that Trevor would wake her up so she could sleep with him in their bed. As she woke up she realized that Mike was having the cook out at his place at three in the afternoon. A smile crossed her lips as she pondered the good time that was in the works at the get together. Something told her the night would be fun so she readied herself for it. She did her hair in the same natural look she had found the weekend before then went to get something to wear. She selected a nice floral top with white Capri pants and flip flops to finish the ensemble. As she waited for the time Trevor got ready. He wore jeans and a black tee shirt with sequins with his black and purple tennis shoes.

Nadine wanted to make something to take over, but Trevor nixed the idea saying there would plenty to go around. As they waited for the time to go by Nadine tried to talk to Trevor about how he was doing, but he got a phone call and went to the other room. Nadine had a hurt look in her eyes as he left and looked at the clock. It was past three so she decided to go on. As she gathered her purse Trevor came out and saw her getting ready to go.

"Ready to go honey?" she asked.

"Yeah, let's get this over with," he said in a very droll tone.

Nadine could tell by the tone of his voice that he was less than thrilled about going to Mike's. The look in his eyes as they locked up and walked towards the house was less than thrilled, but it changed as they saw the house was packed with cars. Out front several people milled about, including half the block. Intermixed with them was a lot of people neither had ever seen before. Walking to the door Nadine saw Chad, the mover from the other day, talking to a very pretty brunette about something. As they approached Chad noticed her and greeted her warmly.

"Hey. Didn't expect to see you again so soon," he said smiling and extended his hand.

"Hi Chad, this is my husband Trevor," Nadine greeted and introduced.

Chad extended his hand to Trevor who simply slapped it once then put his hand away. The greeting was less than considerate, but Chad let it go. Nadine was about to protest Trevor when a familiar face got both of their attention.

"Nadine mami! Venga aquí!" Melina said in a bubbly voice.

Nadine saw what Melina was wearing and her eyes bulged. Melina's bronzed skin was in a black bikini top that barely covered her breasts and a pair of white short shorts that left the bottoms of her round ass cheeks showing. Nadine saw the outfit and chuckled, but Trevor saw it and stared. He watched as Nadine gave the sexy woman a hug and cheek kiss then as she turned to face Trevor he cut to the chase.

"Hi, I'm Trevor, Nadine's husband," he said and took Melina's hand and kissed it.

Melina saw the gesture and smiled in greeting at him. No sooner than he let go of her hand she went back to Nadine and put her arm through hers.

"Come on mami, let's get you a drink," she purred and Nadine could only walk helplessly as she was pulled along.

Trevor took a moment to watch the two leave, but his eyes were not focused on his wife, they were firmly fixed on the room. Inside the living room were several women that were drop dead gorgeous. As well as a few men that were equally attractive. The way the people mingled showed there was a energy in the room that was barely contained. Trevor watched his wife disappear then went to the room to make some friends.

As Nadine was led outside she saw the kids from the move playing in the pool with the other neighborhood kids. She saw several other kids she didn't recognize from the block playing with the others. As she made it to the bar Nadine felt something brush by her legs. The feeling was a furry texture that she had never felt before and as she looked down her eyes got wide. The thing that bumped her leg was a large German Shepard. It seemed to pay her no mind as it trotted up to the kids who immediately fell upon the dog and began playing tag with it. Nadine watched as the dog was very playful and loving with the kids. When one of the kids would lay down it put it's muzzle in their body and shook it's head playfully.

Nadine laughed as she watched the kids playing with the dog and as she looked around she saw a lot of people from the block here, but even more people she didn't know. There were women sunning themselves on the lawn chairs. A few in the pool with the kids and a lot of cute guys walking around. As she looked back Melina had a drink in her hand and placed it in Nadine's hand.

"Dink up mami!" she exclaimed and clinked glasses with her.

Nadine sipped the drink and it kicked her hard. Nadine rarely drank and when she did it was a few glasses of wine or champagne. The drink she was sipping was a very strong Mai Thai. As she sipped it she scanned the lawn and sitting under an umbrella with a group of people at the table with him was Mike. He sat talking with the people as they ate with him. He had a large glass filled with what looked like soda and a plate of food before him. As he sat another German Shepard was leaned against his leg and Mike would absently rub it's head or scratch it behind the ears as he talked and ate.

The first thing she noticed was he was wearing a pair of white cargo shorts and that was it. His body showed the amount of tattoos he had and there was a great many of them. His back was a collage of what looked like a battle between heaven and hell. Demons and angels fought and died in a great battle. His right arm had tattoos as well, but he was turned so she couldn't see them. Sitting with him was a very attractive black woman who was talking to Mike and a black man who seemed to be sitting quiet. The woman wore a nice tank top and she looked very well educated. Mike and her seemed to have a decent familiarity to them and the conversation was very cordial, and semi professional.

Nadine's eyes saw another woman sitting next to Mike and Nadine was taken back by what she saw. The woman was beyond pretty. Her eyes were large and brown and her dark mahogany skin contrasted with the white swim suit she wore. Her hair was in a high pony tail that went half way down her back. She also noted that the two of the ladies had matching rings on their fingers. Across from Mike was a older white man who had two women sitting next to him that looked to be about twenty years younger than him. The young women wore skimpy swim suits and that was it. The older man wore a loose shirt and pants, but looked very professional.