Cure For Pain
Page 13
“Hey, Teach, you out here?” Dom called.
She stepped back from Ty, feeling strangely guilty and more than a little disappointed.
Dom joined them outside. He eyed Ty warily but his words were directed at Mary, “I heard you might be out here. I wanted to see if you needed anything.”
“She’s fine, Dom. Go back inside.” Ty’s voice was cold and commanding.
“Why don’t you let the lady answer for herself?” The two of them fairly bristled at each other. Mary stepped in.
“I’m fine, Dom. I just needed to talk to Ty.” Her eyes quickly flashed to Ty to see if he would interrupt. “You can go back in and join the group. I think I’m going to take off now, anyway. Please give my apologies to Rozene and tell her I’ll see her Monday.” Mary used her best authoritative teacher voice, yet Dom made no move to leave.
Dom turned to look at her, searching for something in her face. When he found whatever answer he was searching for, he turned back to Ty, his eyes filled with cold, hard contempt.
“For fuck’s sake, man, she’s Roz’s teacher. She doesn’t need to get involved in any of your bullshit.” His hands were clenched tightly into fists and his jaw flexed.
“She’s not. Now go back in like she asked you to.”
Mary looked from one to the other. She had guessed that they knew each other, but judging by their tense stances and cutting tones, she doubted they were friends. They looked ready to throw down as soon as the other said the word. She didn’t need this alpha male bullshit.
“You know what? Fuck you both. I’m going home.”
She shrugged Ty’s hand off when he reached out for her and ignored both of them as they called out. She stomped back to the door and went in through the kitchen. She felt curious eyes on her, but kept going without pause. Her vision blurred, so she quickened the pace. More often than she would like, her anger came out as tears.
She drove home, berating herself for having gone to the party in the first place. She hadn’t planned to, not wanting to encourage Dom, but in the end she found herself pulling her sexiest top from the closet. She told herself during the extra time spent on her hair that she was only going to support a student, not because she wanted to see Ty.
So what if she still had his note stuck to her bedroom wall? She wasn’t going to call him. All the way to Dee’s, she told herself that he wouldn’t be there and if he was, she wouldn’t pay attention to him. When she walked in and didn’t see him, she refused to admit that she was disappointed. It wasn’t until Dom was introducing her to his crew that she began to feel the now-familiar tingle that could only mean Ty was nearby.
She found herself casually looking around to see if she could spot him. She had almost chalked it up to nothing more than an overactive imagination when he had appeared from nowhere and pulled her outside.
That brought her back to his kiss. She steered with one hand as she absently touched her lips with the other. It was so cliché, but she still questioned how it could feel so right when it was so wrong. She was absolutely torn. Never had she felt so drawn to someone. Was it his mysterious aura or the lost little boy that peeked out at her through long lashes that had her so willing to take her chances with Ty? Whatever it was, it was undeniably strong, possibly stronger than she was.
When had Ty decided he wanted her in his life? Was it after the night in the bar or the night of her fall? Neither had been very long ago. If prison wasn’t able to deter him from dealing, how did he think she could? How did she even know he was telling her the truth? What if she did give Ty the chance and it didn’t work out? She thought about the obvious bruise near his eye and the split lip. Would he become violent?
She was getting ahead of herself; she just needed to talk to him. Mary had already sensed that Nikki wasn’t a hundred percent truthful. Just the way she over-sensationalized everything made Mary question some of her stories. She suspected that Ty would want to finish their conversation, and would probably show up at her place right after she did.
She was wrong. He was already there waiting for her.
Ty was parked right in the middle of the lot, blocking at least seven cars from getting out if they wanted to. He stood, casually leaning against the back of the bright blue car, waiting for her. There was no question about it; he was the most handsome man she had ever seen. There was a rugged, devil-may-care quality to him. It made him appear more rakish than unkempt, with his stubble-covered jaw and his wavy tangles of dark hair that just about touched his shoulders. He even made the splattered and stained gray t-shirt and jeans he’d worn to work look good. What made Mary the most weak in the knees was the way he looked at her as she got out of her car. He probably wasn’t even aware of the slight smile on his face. But his eyes…his eyes devoured her and she knew without a doubt that she was already lost to him.
“Mary, we need to talk,” he demanded. His tone only made her want to challenge him, rather than comply.
“I don’t converse with men who act like cretins,” she shot back, continuing to walk past, “and move your beast. You’re impeding traffic flow.”
His big hand grasped her arm and swung her around to face him. “Come on, Mary. You know damn well we weren’t finished back there. If Dom hadn’t busted in on us…”
“Then you wouldn’t be acting like an overbearing ass right now?” She arched her brow at him.
“Why was he looking for you?” His eyes narrowed. She narrowed hers in return.
“Why is it your business?”
“Is there something going on between you two, Mary?” He wasn’t playing around, but Mary couldn’t stop herself from egging him on further.
“I guess I just like bad boys,” she responded sarcastically, but immediately realized she’d pushed him too far.
“Enough with the games!” his growl reverberated through her, all the way to her toes, leaving lingering vibrations in her secret spot. “What is up with Dom Greyhawk?”
She threw his arm off. “Nothing! I teach his sister! That’s it. Are you happy now? Are you always so freaking obsessive with girls, or is it just me and Sara?”
“What the hell are you talking about?”
“The fact that you stalked her! Ring any bells? Nikki told me all about it. How you never let her go out without you and would track her down if she did. How you basically ruled her life until she dumped you.”
“First of all, she didn’t ‘dump me’ and second, I only ‘ruled her life’ because she was too fucked up most of the time to do it herself.”
“Are you telling me Nikki was just making it all up? That you weren’t possessive and domineering with Sara? You never followed her places and watched her? You were never so jealous that you refused to let her have other friends, even Nikki? What about giving her drugs?”
Ty let out a harsh, dark chuckle.
“What? She told me you used to supply her heroin.” Mary was standing before him with her hands on her hips, waiting for him to answer the accusations. He just smiled grimly and shook his head.
“She really doesn’t get it, does she?” He whispered, and his voice was almost sad.
Did he still have feelings for Sara? Mary wanted to hear his side of it.
“What happened between you two?”
Ty was staring off into the darkness. Mary quietly studied him as she waited for his answer. She could see that he was thinking it over. His brow was creased and his lips pursed, his face shadowed with a torment she couldn’t understand. The chill of the May night was getting to her. Her shiver caught his eye and he turned to her.
“Maybe it would be better if we talked about this inside. You’re freezing.”
Did she want to let Ty back into her apartment? She wasn’t sure.
“Hey, asshole! Move your fucking car!” It was one of the neighbors from upstairs. Ty straightened up; a hardness came over his face. He looked like he had before, when he was staring Dom down. Mary quietly suggested to Ty that he move his car and come inside.
She went into the kitchen to escape his gaze and looked around, not really sure what she was doing in there. A shiver ran through her, reminding her that she was still cold and that going out in May without a jacket had been a stupid idea. Hot chocolate would be good, and it would keep her busy for a few more minutes. She opened the cupboard to grab a cup and felt Ty’s eyes on her. She glanced over her shoulder to see him casually propped against the archway of the kitchen. He had one long, jean-clad leg crossed over the other with his hands in his pockets, watching every move she made. He looked right standing there, like he belonged there. The thought was unsettling, yet oddly warming.
“I’m making hot chocolate. Would you like some? I can get you something else if you’d rather.” She set her cup down on the counter and waited for his answer.
A wistful look passed over his face. “I haven’t had hot chocolate in years. It sounds great.”
“Come in and sit down. It won’t take long.” She motioned for him to take a seat at the island.
He chose a stool facing into the kitchen as he silently watched her making their drinks. She felt the heat of Ty’s gaze as she gathered the mix, marshmallows and spoons, and waited for the water to heat. She was concentrating so hard on not looking at him that she jumped a little when the beep from the microwave signaled that it was done. She felt the blush creep up as she sheepishly glanced over at Ty and saw him smirk.
She set about mixing it up. She reached into a cabinet for a bottle of schnapps and held it up, “Would you like some?”
“Sure.” There was a slightly mocking twinkle in his eyes, and his lips curved up even more.
She turned away from him quickly before he could see just how that smile affected her. She added a liberal amount to both cups, stirred, and topped them off with the marshmallows. She gingerly brought the cups over to the island and took a seat facing him. His eyes sparkled when he saw the mug before him.
“My mom used to make this for me when I was a kid, without the alcohol, of course.” A sad smile ghosted over his lips as he mused over the steaming mug. “She worked as a waitress for a while, and I would go in after school and wait for her to finish her shift. If it was cold outside she would bring me a cup of hot chocolate and a cookie.” He shook his head and reached for the spoon, pushing the marshmallows around. He looked up at her and grinned. “Thank you.”
Ty talked about his mother in the past tense, and Mary would have liked to ask what had happened to her, but he distracted her by taking a small sip, leaving a smidgen of sticky white cream on his upper lip. He licked it away, effectively rendering her mute. She met his eyes again and quickly dropped hers. She felt the telltale blush spread over her cheeks and quickly took a drink, scalding her tongue in the process. Mary couldn’t help but laugh when Ty spooned a marshmallow into his mouth and sucked on it. His brows knit together.
“What? The melty stuff is the best part.”
“That’s what I always tell Faith, too!” She liked his laugh. It was warm and smooth, like his singing had been.
“So where is Faith tonight?”
“Nuh-uh.” She pointed at him with her spoon. “You are not going to distract me. Tonight you’re the one to answer questions.”
Ty sighed and shoved his mug to the side. He steeled himself for her interrogation. “What do you want to know?”
“What happened to your face?”
“Stupidity.”
She wasn’t about to let him off that easy and continued to stare at him, waiting for a longer answer.
“Fine, call it a case of mistaken identity. A complete misunderstanding.” That was as much as he was willing to give her. “What else do you want to know?”
“Everything.”
He arched an eyebrow, “Everything?”
She nodded.
“That’s a little vague. Could you narrow that question down a little bit?” The hint of a smirk that tugged at the corner of his mouth had her melting like the marshmallows in her cup. She wasn’t going to let it get to her, though.
“How about you start with the stalking allegations?”
He rolled his eyes and scoffed. “I didn’t stalk her.”
“Really? ‘Cause that’s not how Nikki told it.”
“How much did Nikki tell you about herself? Or was she more interested in defaming me?” Mary couldn’t tell whether he was trying to twist out of an explanation or whether he was deciding what to tell her.
“She told Faith and I about being friends with Sara. I’m guessing it was you that she was talking about once before, only she referred to you as T. J. and I didn’t make the connection.” He nodded. Many from his pre-prison days used T. J. instead of Ty. “Then after you stopped in that night, she was quite forthcoming on your obsessive tendencies.”
He wasn’t completely surprised that Nikki had made it sound like he was crazy. She accused him of it all the time when he was with Sara. He thought maybe time would make her see things differently, but it didn’t sound like it. He heard the rumors that Sara and Nikki had cleaned up. He didn’t really know if he believed them or if he just didn’t want to think that Sara could. It was just another blow to think that he wasn’t worth it to her at the time to sober up. In fact, he was a little resentful about the whole thing. If things had been different…then he wouldn’t have met Mary. Ty just had to keep telling himself that.
“So she didn’t mention how fucked up she used to be all the time?”
“Actually, she did. I had already figured she wasn’t exactly straight edge, based on the way she talked about things. She also said how she, Sara and a couple of other friends were heavy users. She said she cleaned up after Sara had a baby with some other addict with severe medical conditions from all the drugs she’d done while she was pregnant. That was when she mentioned you used to give the drugs to her.” She looked at him pointedly.
He smirked. “I supplied her?” he snorted and shook his head.
“Are you denying that? I mean, you did admit to dealing.”
“First, we need to get some things straight about Nikki. She may have cleaned up her act now but when I knew her she was far from it. I first met her and Sara when I was a junior in high school. They were seniors and had every guy in the school after them. They were party girls, always out to drink, smoke or snort whatever they could. I knew Sara’s reputation. I knew she used guys to get what she wanted. I don’t know why I thought I would be any different.”
Ty’s voice had gone cold and emotionless. It felt like he was retelling something that happened to someone else. His eyes darted around the kitchen, never once meeting her eyes as he continued on.
“I never thought she would notice me. Not when she had her choice of guys much older and cooler than me. It wasn’t until she found out I was a dealer that she even knew I was alive.” He briefly met her gaze before dropping his back to the counter, where he began to idly slide her empty hot chocolate mug around.
“At first it was small things: flirting with me when she saw me at school, a few smiles and winks. Then she started hinting that she knew I was holding. I never brought that shit to school, so I eventually met up with her at some random’s house to give her some. At the time I told myself that it was me, and not the dope she was interested in. I thought I could have something with her. I did, but then who didn’t?” He looked up at her again with a bitter smile. “Sara wasn’t exactly selective. She fucked whoever could get her what she wanted.”
He looked away again, and Mary could see the red tint to his cheeks. “Soon I was giving her more than I was selling. She also had me fucking using with her, which was something I knew better th
an to do. I didn’t like what heroin – or any other drug, really – did to me. Sara was more partial to eight-balls than straight heroin anyway. Although it really didn’t matter, she did whatever she had and, like the pathetic little lovesick puppy I was, I did whatever she told me to.”
Mary didn’t interrupt him. She just listened to all he had to tell her, completely wrapped up in his story. Much like Jack’s, it was so different from the world she knew that it was almost mythical.
“By the time high school graduation rolled around, my grades had tanked. I was barely able to graduate. I’d spent my whole life up to that point with my eye towards the future. All I ever wanted before I met Sara was to go to college and get myself the hell out of here and take my mom with me. It was the reason I started dealing. The money was going to get us far away from here.” He laughed bitterly. It was so much different than the warm, musical sound from before. Mary could see the self-loathing in his eyes; it made her heart ache for him, and she reached out to touch his hand. He flinched and pulled back, hiding his hands under the counter. She dropped hers self-consciously and wrapped her arms around herself to keep from reaching out to him again.
“With college now out of the picture, I turned my attention to Sara. I quickly saw where that life was heading. I knocked off all the shit and tried to get her to stop, too. She wasn’t having it. She continued to go out, and her use wasn’t recreational anymore. The more she did, the worse it became. Yes, I started to follow her, but only because I was afraid she’d OD or end up hurt somehow. Her family never cared about her. I knew they wouldn’t do anything to help her, and her friends were just as fucked up as she was. Finally it got to the point where I realized she wasn’t going to change. We fought all the time and she would just take off and leave and someone would call and tell me to come get her. I got fed up with going into random places and dragging her, more often than not, naked ass out. It was when I cut her off that it really got nasty.”