Vice (Tortured Heroes Book 1)

by Jayne Blue

  I drew my knees up and rested my chin on them, hugging my legs tight. “Storage mostly. The wine cellar’s in the back. The windows aren’t even much help. There’s just the one and it’s glass block. Too small to crawl through even if we were able to break it.”

  “Well then, I guess it’s back to trying to break the fucking door down. If I have to, I’ll take the thing off its hinges. Don’t suppose you have any tools down here?”

  “No,” I said, shaking my head. I couldn’t see him, but the air shifted and I knew Jase had squatted down a couple of steps above me. I felt his breath against my temple and it made me shiver. I had the urge to reach out and touch him again. I didn’t like the dark. Hated it, actually. And this was about as black as it got with no natural light coming through the dusty block window on the other side of the room.

  Something brushed against my hand and I jumped, nearly falling off the step. Jase must have sensed it because he reached out and gripped my shoulder, his fingers spreading wide to feel what part of me he grabbed.

  “Sorry. I felt something … uh … skitter. Oh gawd. Just what I need. I hate spiders, Jase.”

  The minute I said it, icy fingers of panic crawled up my spine. I imagined dozens of pairs of beady eyes and spindly legs scuttling out from every darkened corner making their way toward us. Jase let out an infuriating chuckle at my neurotic distress. If I weren’t worried about pitching myself off the stairs and kissing concrete, I would have reached out and swatted him.

  “Tools, Devin. Tools. Where do you keep them?”

  “In the office,” I sighed, feeling defeated. The gravity of the situation settled over my shoulders. I could think of no good way of getting out of this basement until someone let us out.

  “There’s nothing down here? Not even an ice pick?”

  “God. No. We just don’t do much down here except store crap. I know, I know. It’s wasted space. My uncle’s been on me about that. One thing at a time though.”

  “Dev, you’re rambling. Stay with me. I’m gonna try brute force. How about you make your way over to the window. There’s at least a chance someone can hear if you shout toward the alley.”

  “Right.” It wasn’t much of a plan, but it was worth a shot. The only trouble was, feeling my way across the basement floor in the dark. I kept the floor mostly clear, but had boxes, old chairs, and piles of other shit inherited from previous building owners lining the walls.

  I gingerly took steps down the remaining stairs and waved my hands in front of me. Eyes wide open, I just saw black with the hint of shadows. Behind me, Jase tried to bash the door in. I swear, the force of it seemed like it shook the building. If the door opened out, I think it might have worked. As it was though, all he managed to do was hurl a string of obscenities into the inky, dark air and jam his shoulder.

  “Be careful!” I yelled out behind me. “Let’s not add a dislocated shoulder to the ingredients on this particular shit sandwich.”

  “Fuck! Yeah. All right,” Jase grumbled after one more great thud that shook the walls. “That bitch isn’t gonna budge. Solid oak. I never thought I’d say this, but I have new appreciation for that shit particle board they make doors out of these days.”

  “Right,” I said, fanning my hands out in front of me. I tripped over something metal, then made contact with the far wall. Just a faint ribbon of shadows above me let me know I’d found the tiny window. I knew we had an old, broken coat rack stacked against the wall nearby and I felt for it. I nearly pulled the thing down on myself before closing my fingers around the brass pole.

  “Stay back there,” I called to Jase. My luck, I’d pick up the coat rack and brain him with it. I hoisted it up and tried to bash the window with the end of it. I got in one solid whack before the coat rack broke in half and the sand-filled base spun off the rod, hitting the floor with a clank.

  “You okay?” Jase called out, his voice rising in concern.

  “Yeah.” My boot filled with sand but the coat rack was the only casualty.

  “Don’t move,” he said. “I’m heading toward you.”

  Jase stepped off the stairs and came toward me with sure-footed steps that made me think he might be part cat, or bat, or whatever the hell kind of animal could see in the dark. The air shifted behind me and his strong hand reached out, resting gently on the small of my back. Goosebumps covered me as I turned to face him.

  I couldn’t see his face, just the murky shadow of his solid form. I reached up, running my hands along his muscled chest until I rested them on his shoulders. My heart hammered a frantic pulse between my ears. We were close, intimate. And yet, this seemed safe somehow. I had to touch him to know he was there.

  “I’m sorry,” I whispered. “I’m sure there are a thousand places you’d rather be right now.”

  He stiffened as if he were about to admit something. Then I felt his muscles ease. Jase let out a husky laugh that heated my blood. “This isn’t your fault.”

  My turn to laugh. “Thanks for saying that, but it completely is. I should have stayed on Kinney’s ass to fix the damn door.”

  Jase’s chest expanded beneath my fingertips as he took a deep breath. “Fine then. Remind me to kick Kinney’s ass next time I see him.”

  “Fair enough. But what do you propose we do in the meantime?”

  He reached out and slid his hand down until he cupped my elbow. He turned me toward what I believe was the direction of the stairs. “Well. Let’s assess the situation. That door isn’t budging until someone opens it from the other side. I can try to break the window but it’s too small to crawl out. And the light’s burned out.”

  “Yeah. That pretty much covers the con side of the column.”

  “On the plus side, maybe I can fix the light. Do you keep the bulbs down here?”

  I smiled in the darkness. “There should be a box under the stairs. Unless somebody used the last one without telling me. I should be able to figure out which one it is. It’ll be long and slender.”

  “Let’s try to work that problem.”

  We shuffled toward the stairs. I ran my hand along the wood slats under the railing. The space beneath the stairs wasn’t tall enough for me to stand upright. I squealed twice as my hand passed through cobwebs or something worse.

  “Sorry,” I said after the second scream made Jase jump. “I told you. I really hate spiders. And if you tell me they’re more afraid of me than I am of them, I’m going to treat you like the coat rack.”

  He laughed. “Fair enough. Any luck?”

  “Got it!” After shoving past a few other stacks of boxes, my fingers closed around a long, narrow box. I pulled it out and worked on opening one end. But the minute I lifted it, I knew we’d hit another dead end.

  “Fuck!”

  “You okay?”

  “Yes. Dammit. The fucker’s empty. Will you remind me to fire the shit out of Kinney the next time I see him?”

  “Sure. And you can remind me to beat the shit out of him.”

  “I’ll help you.”

  We stood in total darkness and silence for a breath. Then another. The weight of our situation settled over us at the same time. We were stuck down here. Probably for the rest of the night and probably in total darkness.

  A tiny rush of air brushed my cheek and I jumped as Jase smashed something, likely his fist, against the stair railing. Dust and debris showered over my head and I jumped back in shock and disgust.

  “Shit. Devin? I’m sorry. Are you okay?”

  I coughed and brushed another cobweb away from my face. “Yeah. Just. Ugh. Lay off the Hulk-smash for a while, will you?”

  “Come here,” he said and his strong arms came around me again. How did he do that? Jase seemed to have some preternatural sense and moved with ease while I fumbled through the dark. He took my hand and led me toward the stairs. “Let’s just sit for a minute. Let me figure out a plan.”

  I walked up two steps, reached out to find my way, then sat down pressing my back against the wall
. Jase was right behind me. He sat up one step and kept my hand folded in his as he rested it against his thigh.

  “I really am sorry,” I whispered. “How about I let you have the night off tomorrow?”

  He laughed. “Nice try. Tomorrow already is my night off. You could give me the next night off too but Kinney’s going to be beaten and fired, remember?”

  “Oh. Right. Yeah.” We laughed together and I let out a sigh as I leaned against Jase’s thigh. He let go of my hand and settled his fingers over my shoulders. He kneaded the flesh there sending shivers down my spine as he worked my tight muscles. I couldn’t help but groan from the pleasure of the sensation.

  “Any chance someone’s expecting you tonight?” he said, his voice barely more than a whisper. I tilted my head back, settling under Jase’s divine touch. God, was there nothing this man couldn’t do?

  “Afraid not. What you see is what you get with me. My life is this bar. I don’t have time for anything else.”

  Jase’s breath skittered along the back of my neck, sending a shudder across my flesh.

  “Hmm. No hot dates?”

  “Nope.”

  “What about you? You were in a hurry to get out of here. You have some Northpointe hottie waiting for you back at your apartment? Should I plan on playing my stereo loud just in case?”

  I laughed at my own dumb joke but Jase’s fingers went still and his tone grew serious when he answered. “There’s no one, Devin. My life is pretty much this bar right now too.”

  Silence and darkness settled between us for one beat. Then two. Then something bubbled up inside of me and I felt Jase’s posture shift too. We burst out laughing together. A great body-heaving, belly-busting, snorting fit of giggles that I couldn’t contain. I curled in on myself and rested my forehead against Jase’s knee as he ran his hand down my spine and took my hand again to keep me from rolling off the stairs.

  When we’d both recovered ourselves, Jase moved down to the next step so we sat side by side. I rested my head against his shoulder as he circled his arm around me and pulled me close. It was an intimate, familiar gesture. Maybe it was the circumstances. Down there in pitch blackness, we couldn’t look at each other or read facial cues. Touch was the only form of nonverbal communication we had and neither of us seemed to feel like talking. I don’t know how long we sat like that in silence side by side. Long enough that we both felt natural and comfortable together.

  Finally, Jase took a breath. “Tell me about you,” he said. He pressed his thumb against one of my palms, splaying my fingers out. He massaged me there sending waves of pleasure through me.

  “What don’t you already know?”

  “What about your family? Have you heard from your sister?”

  My heart skipped a beat and it was in me to evade or lie, but I didn’t. “No. My uncle looked for her for me. Hired a private investigator and everything. But she’s gone.”

  Jase squeezed my hand. “What do you think happened?”

  No one ever asked me that. Hell, I hadn’t really asked it of myself. I’d been too afraid. But somehow, in the intimate darkness with Jase holding my hand, the truth came easier. “I think it was something bad. It’s been over a year. She’s never stayed out of touch that long. And I think I always knew it was only a matter of time before her … uh … lifestyle caught up with her.”

  “You sound like you’ve made your peace with it.”

  I shrugged. “It hurts. I can’t lie. And I miss her. We had plans. She and I were supposed to run this place together. All the redecorating inside the bar? That was Mandy. She has an artistic eye. But she’s just never been able to follow through with anything. My parents were the same way. Rootless. I could never count on them and Mandy told me never to count on her either.”

  “I’m sorry. That’s tough.”

  “Is it? I guess so. I don’t know. Sometimes though, I think it makes you stronger. You know? Better to know the only one you can really count on is yourself. That’s true for everyone. That way you can never really be disappointed.”

  Jase let out a little chuff and squeezed my hand again.

  “It’s no different for you though, is it?” I asked. “I mean, what you told me about your parents. Your dad?”

  Jase leaned back and stretched out his leg across the step below us. “I’ve got a brother. We’re twins. We look exactly alike but all my life I thought we couldn’t be more different. He was the rootless one. Left home as soon as he hit eighteen. And he left me behind to deal with our parents’ shit show. Just like your sister did, it sounds like. But it’s different now. We both grew up. He came back home and cleaned up his act. We kind of found our way back, you know?”

  I turned to face him, wishing desperately I could see his face. “You’re close now?”

  “Closer than we were when we were kids. For sure.”

  “Then why did you leave? Why did you come to Northpointe, Jase? The truth.”

  He stiffened beside me. Maybe I’d dug too deep. Maybe the false intimacy of the darkness got him to reveal more than he wanted. Whatever it was, I felt him pull away.

  I acted on impulse. He leaned back and I leaned in closer. I couldn’t see his face or read his eyes so I reached up and trailed my fingers along his strong jaw, the stubble tickling the pad of my thumb. His hand rested on the small of my back and I felt him go rigid. A heartbeat. Then another. There in the thick darkness, some silent truth passed between us.

  I wanted him. He was wrong for me. Probably. I still knew so little about him except the only thing that mattered in that moment. I felt his pulse quicken as I closed the dark space between us and felt his heated breath against my cheek.

  Jase’s hand slid up to the center of my back. He threaded his fingers beneath the ponytail at the nape of my neck and pulled me close. Pausing for an instant, as if to ask me if I was sure. I parted my lips and closed the distance between us. His lips were warm and salty against mine. I couldn’t catch my breath. I couldn’t get close enough. Jase let out a groan that set off an electric charge all through my body.

  “Devin.” He whispered my name between kisses. Over and over. “Devin. Devin.”

  The world seemed to spin out of time. In the heat and darkness, with Jase’s body pressed against mine everything fell away. There was just the two of us. There had only ever been just the two of us. He was good and solid. Sin and heat. I couldn’t get enough and couldn’t take it back. I didn’t want to.

  That first kiss was slow. But the energy between us became combustible. One kiss wasn’t enough. Would never be enough.

  Clothes. Too many clothes. We pressed our lips and bodies against each other. Somehow he turned me so I sat on the stair above him. He knelt below me and tugged at the waistband of my jeans. I found the hem of his shirt and pulled it up over his head, hating the split second it took his lips away from mine.

  Heat coursed through me, settling in the sweet spot between my legs. I throbbed for him. Logic flew out of my head. A thousand reasons why this was an epically bad idea. He worked for me. He was trouble. Of course he was.

  “Oh, fuck it,” I whispered, wanting more and more. Heat rose with me, burning through my clothes even. I tore off my shirt and his lips found the space between my breasts. He ran his tongue along the slope above my bra cup. With two deft fingers, he reached around and unhooked the clasp. When his lips found my nipple, I cried out from the shock of pleasure as he sucked me there. Teasing. Coaxing. Making me arch my back into the sensation.

  “Jase,” I gasped as I ran my hands over his shoulders, feeling every solid ripple of corded muscle. God. I wanted to see him. But maybe this was even better. I felt my way along his chest, running my fingertips down until I caught the rough edge of his jeans. I fumbled with his fly.

  Jase straightened and reached back. Something in his pocket. The whiff of leather, a rustle, then a tear of plastic. He stood tall and straight, maybe two steps down from me. My fingers closed around the solid, turgid length of him. He p
ulsed in my hand and I looked up, desperate to find his eyes but there was only darkness and his hot breath against my face.

  “Are you sure?” he said, his breath ragged. I reached up and slid my hands around the back of his neck; pulling him down I answered him first with another kiss.

  “Of course, not,” I whispered. “But let’s do it anyway.”

  His sultry laugh sent a shudder through me. I caught a whiff of latex and I peeled my own jeans down past my hips. Jase reached out and helped me, sliding my pants off the rest of the way as I kicked off my boots. Then his skillful fingers found me. I spread my legs as he touched me there, slipping a finger beneath the cotton crotch of my underwear. I was wet. Molten. My breath hitched as he worked me, bringing me close to an orgasm with just that simple, delicious touch.

  Then he dragged my panties down and the stairs creaked as he drew closer. I braced myself on the stair above me, leaning back on my elbows. Jase stood between my legs, stroking me. I writhed and moaned, uninhibited in the darkness. If he could see me, God knows what he would have thought. He turned me into some wild, sensual creature. I didn’t let go like this. Not ever. The only thing that seemed to matter was the feel of his fingers between my legs. He knew just how to touch me. How to draw me out and leave me panting for him. I wanted to reach out and touch him back, but I quivered beneath him feeling boneless and liquid.

  Then his breath caressed my cheek and I reached up to touch his face. He pressed my knees down, spreading me wide as he reached down and pulled my panties off the rest of the way.

  Then he entered me. I arched my back and brought my legs up, wrapping them around his waist as his jeans slid down. Oh God. He was huge and hard and filled me perfectly. He kept one hand free and wrapped the other arm around my waist to keep me in place. But oh, the things he did with that free hand. Jase tweaked my nipples to heighten my pleasure. He cupped my face and kissed me slow. And he drove himself into me deeper and deeper as I curved my body around his and took him in.

  He fit. We fit. Jase found the perfect rhythm as he drew me out and filled me. I wanted him. Why had we waited so long?