First Down

by Paula Mabbel

  Rob took in the dangerous edge that her eyes held. He could tell that there was something more to what was going on, but he couldn’t deny that having her on his side wouldn’t be a bad thing. “What happened with your brother?”

  “He killed someone who meant a lot to me,” Trina said as she tried to perfectly replicate the emotion of hurt on her face.

  Rob nodded. “Well, we all play dangerous games.”

  The door to the bar swung open and Trina quickly looked around to see who had come in. “Dominic?” She asked with her eyes full of worry. “What are you doing here?”

  “I’ve come to take you home-you stupid whore,” Dominic said as he took huge strides across the room to where she was standing. He grabbed ahold of her arm and started to pull her roughly out of the bar.

  “I’m not going with you,” she said as she struggled to break free from his grip.

  “You’ll do as I tell you,” Dominic said with such rage in his voice that for a moment Trina froze and stopped fighting.

  “I don’t think the lady wants to go with you,” Rob said from behind them.

  “I don’t think it matters what you think,” Dominic spat at Rob, before turning his attentions back to his sister.

  “Well, seen as though you’re on my territory I’d say that it does matter what I think and I think she’s going to stay here,” Rob said calmly, but the atmosphere dropped with her words.

  “You really want her?” Dominic said, as he dropped his hand from Trina’s arm. “Then take her,” he said, as he brought his hand up quickly and smashed it into the side of her face. “She’s no use to me anymore anyways,” he grumbled, before walking out back out of the door.

  Trina could still feel small aftershocks of pain running through her cheek, as a hot burning sensation started to run across her skin. Dominic had hit her harder than she had expected, but she knew that he’d had to make it look real. She cupped her cheek in her hand, as though it might somehow soothe the pain, as she turned back around to Dominic who was still standing beside her.

  “You’re going to need some ice for that,” he said, as he walked over and helped Trina back over to the bar.

  “Listen, I need somewhere safe to stay. I’m not used to being on my own. If you can offer me some shelter, maybe some protection, then I’ll tell you anything you want to know about my brother’s club.”

  “You don’t feel bad about betraying your brother?” Rob asked with suspicion in his eyes.

  “He’s no brother of mine,” Trina said bitterly and with the aid of her still hurting face, she pulled a look, which she knew Rob believed.

  “I’m sure we can arrange that then,” Rob said. He knew the deal was too good to pass down, even if he wasn’t sure whether he could trust her. What damage could she do anyway? It wasn’t like he was going to share the Snakes Fangs secrets in return.

  “Thank you,” Trina said, as she smiled at him and ran her hand over the top of his. “It really means a lot to me.”

  “Come on, we better get you cleaned up,” Rob said after a moment’s thought. He pushed himself up off of the barstool and held his hand out for Trina, so that she could do the same.

  “Where are we going?” She asked him, as she tried to keep up with his quick pace.

  “Back to mine, trust me, you don’t want to stay with any of the other guys,” he said casually, as he stopped in front of a black Harley motorcycle that was embellished with beautiful, well-polished chrome.

  ******

  Rob’s place was much nicer than Trina had been expecting. He’d obviously spent a lot of money on it. The wallpaper looked like it was made of velvet. The warm creams and browns in the pattern matched with the big L shaped couch that was in the middle who the huge living space. He had floor to ceiling windows on one side of the room that gave a spectacular view of the city and from the feel of it heated flooring as well.

  “Wow,” Trina said, because she couldn’t help herself. “This place is off the hook,” she continued, as her eyes glanced at the door, which she assumed led on to his room.

  “It took a while, but it’s finally getting to look how I want it,” Rob said with a pleased look on his face. “I mean I know that we’re all expected to live in hovels and most of my guys do, but what can I say? I like to come home and feel comfortable.”

  “Yeah, I get that,” Trina said as she nodded along to his words. “I mean me and my brother lived in a pit. I tried to keep it clean and whatever, but when you can only do so much.”

  “Do you want to sit down and I’ll get us some beer or something?” Rob said as he looked kind of awkwardly at Trina.

  “Sure.” Trina watched as Rob walked off and then she turned her attention back to the view that was unmissable. She sat back on the big sofa and tried to think of a time that she’d been so comfortable. She couldn’t. She’d spent her whole life in dingy bars and damp infested apartments. Rob’s place was nothing like what she was used to. It even smelled fancy, although she couldn’t work out exactly what the smell was, money, perhaps?

  “Here,” Rob said, as he walked back into the room and passed over a cold bottle to Trina. “So, you know I’ve got to ask. What actually happened between you and your brother? I know you told me that he’d killed someone you cared for, but we both know there is more to the story than just that.”

  “You know --curiosity killed the cat,” Trina said playfully, but she could feel the danger flashing in her eyes, as she spoke.

  “Well, then the cat was too easy to kill,” Rob said, as he leaned a little further towards her on the couch.

  “I suppose you might be right,” Trina said with a little tilt of her head. “What do you want to know?”

  “Well, why did your brother kill someone you cared about?”

  Trina sighed and she let a sad look wash over her face. She’d got the story all ready. Trina practiced it a hundred times in front of the mirror, but this was the live show and she could feel butterflies starting to frantically flap their wings in her stomach. “He was jealous I think. I mean I’d been dating Sammy for a few months and things were getting real serious, you know? My brother didn’t like it. He liked his dinner being on the table when he got back home and he wasn’t getting it because I was always with Sammy. So, he shot him.”

  “He killed him because he wanted his dinner on the table?” Rob asked with actual surprise in his eyes. “No wonder you wanted to get away from him. Your brother is a whack job.”

  “Everybody in our club knows it,” she nodded, as though she agreed with what Rob had just called her brother. “They’re all just too afraid to elect someone else as their leader.”

  “That’s messed up.” Rob shook his head. “So were you like in love with this Sammy then?” He asked her out of morbid curiosity. He couldn’t help himself. He couldn’t deny that Trina was a beautiful woman. Her body was slim, but curvy. Her breasts were big and perky. Her blue eyes sparkled with danger and her brown hair bounced as though it had a life of its own. She was in most respects the perfect woman and the fact that she’d been born into the hard world that they shared only made her more irresistible. Rob was after all only human and she would be staying in very close proximity to him until she ran out of use.

  “I guess so; I mean I don’t really know. We were only together for a few months. I think I could have loved him. That’s what hurts the most. I could have loved this awesome, sweet guy who really cared about me, but then my brother took it all away. He forced me to stay by his side and I just couldn’t. I couldn’t be his slave anymore like everybody else; I had to get out of here.”

  “What made you think that the Snake Fangs would be a good place to go?” He asked her because that was the question that was really troubling him. He could understand her wanting to get away from her brother. He could understand the fact that she needed to do it, as she’d done in secret, but he couldn’t understand why she chose to go to him. It didn’t make sense. Surely she knew that would anger her brother ab
ove anything else than she might have done.

  “I’m a smart girl I guess,” Trina said with a little, casual shrug. “I knew that I had the information you want and this would be the safest place for me until that information dries out.”

  The matter of fact way that she spoke made Rob flinch, he hadn’t considered the fact that she’d already worked out that he was keeping her around because she might be useful or that he might dispose of her when then that stopped being the case, but she had. “And what do you think will happen to you when it does dry out?” He asked her with his eyes fixed on hers.

  “I think that you’ll try to get rid of me and then you’ll see just how useful I could have really been to you,” Trina said in a half whisper that came out sexy and deep.

  ******

  A week had passed since Trina had moved in with Rob and she still hadn’t learned anything about the drop off. She was starting to get frustrated with it all. She’d shared with Rob. She’d told him almost everything that he’d wanted to know, but he still didn’t trust her and she was starting to feel unsure about whether he would, before the drop off was made.

  Rob was allowing her into the Snake Fangs bar, though, and she’d done well with learning many small details about their operation that would come in handy once she was home. It felt strange to Trina that she would soon be going back to her brother, even though she had always known that it would end up that way.

  There was still a strange feeling of dread that sat at the bottom of her stomach though, whenever she thought about saying goodbye to Rob and the new life she had created for herself. It wasn’t that she didn’t miss her brother. It was just that Rob was so much nicer to her and his place was so much nicer. He seemed to be living the life that Trina had always wanted and she had to remind herself that the heist would enable her to have all of what Rob had and more.

  “Do you know where Rob is?” Trina asked one of the drunks who was sitting at the bar, slouched over his beer.

  “He went that way,” the drunk said as he gestured down a long corridor that led off from the main bar.

  “Thanks,” Trina said, as she pushed a few dollars over to him, so that he could get himself another. “Enjoy.”

  She walked off from the bar and down into the corridor. It was nearly pitch black, although it was still daytime outside. She realized though that all the windows had been boarded up and the walls had been painted black, as though it wasn’t hard enough already to see. She stopped when she heard voices from behind a door and she knocked quickly, before walking in without waiting to be invited.

  “What is she doing here?” A gruff voice asked from the back of the smoke filled room. “I’m not discussing this in front of her. You know how I feel about all of this. It’s dodgy Rob and you know it. Look at her. She’s honey dicking you.”

  “Honey dicking me?” Rob asked, as his eyebrows lifted with surprised.

  “Oh come on, a tall, beautiful woman walks into the bar. She takes a quick slap and suddenly the leader of the Snake Fangs is offering her refuge. Like that wasn’t the plan all along,” the gruff voice said in an agitated way.

  Trina looked at the guy and then back to Rob. Rob looked like he was thinking about what the guy had just said. She could see his brain processing the information and trying to work out whether it was right or not. She wasn’t sure what to do. The guy had gotten everything right. He’d explained the situation down to every last detail, but she couldn’t let the rest of them realize it.

  “I’m sorry who even are you?” She snapped at him. She could feel every eye in the room turn to her in surprise, as her voice cut through the air with servility. “What? You think you can just accuse me of something and I’m not going to defend myself?” She asked the guy directly. “Dumbass,” she added before she turned her attention to Rob and Rob alone. “You don’t seriously believe this do you? Do you know what kind of risk I’m running sharing my brother’s secrets with you? Have you any idea how much I want to see my brother getting pulled away from that little imaginary throne he loves so much? If you’re not willing to trust me, then I’ll somewhere else. You’re not the only club who wants to see my brother get taken down.”

  Rob was looking her in the eyes. He could tell that she meant it. He could tell that she was ready to walk out of the door and disappear. He couldn’t let that happen. His brain tried to reason with him that she still had information to give, but he knew that wasn’t the reason why. He knew that the real reason why he couldn’t watch her leave was because he needed her to stay, he needed her. “Take a seat,” he said, as he gestured for Trina to take her place at the table.

  “Are you joking? Is this actually a joke?” the gruff voice said, as though he couldn’t believe what his eyes were showing to him.

  Trina looked him over. She let her eyes examine every particle of his being. He was a typical middle aged, beer gutted bloke. His chin was covered with a dark brown beard that he’d trimmed into a point and his jacket had patches sewn all over it with delicate little stitches that must have been made by his mother or his wife maybe.

  “This isn’t a joke Johnathan,” Rob said and his voice was cold.

  Trina could tell from Rob’s reaction that he didn’t like his authority questioned and now that she was in his inner circle it wouldn’t be her problem, but theirs if they kicked up a fuss.

  “We’ve got people in this club who have been with us for years that we don’t trust with the big stuff, but you want to bring in the rival’s sister after knowing her for a week? I’m sorry Rob if you can’t see the joke in that then you’re blind.”

  “Does anybody else feel like this?” Rob asked the room. His question was met with nothing but silence, as every face fell anxious in the wake of their boss’ anger. “Good,” he continued, as he turned to look at Johnathan directly. “If you have a problem with this, then I suggest you drop out of the gig. I’ve told Trina to sit down and that means she’s in. I will not be questioned again.” Rob’s voice was the perfect balance between ice and sharp metal.

  ******

  Trina had the information she needed. She’d had it since the day of the meeting, but she hadn’t told Dominic yet. She knew that when she did then all of it would be over. She knew that she’d have to say goodbye to Rob and the weird little dynamic that they shared together. She wasn’t ready. She kept trying to deny the reasoning to herself, but that didn’t matter because the result was still the same, she wasn’t ready to go.

  She walked over to the small mirror that was balanced on a pile of books. Rob had asked for her to stay in with him. He’d mentioned something about cooking dinner and she couldn’t help, but wonder whether he was thinking about it, as a date.

  She took in her reflection. She looked good. Her bright red lumps looked plump and ready for action. Her hair was shiny and she couldn’t see any strays frizzing about the place. Her skin was even looking a little better than it normally did, but she imagined that was down to the amazing shower that he’d had fitted that sent water cascading down her body like a waterfall.

  The front door to the apartment opened and she smiled at herself in the mirror, before she took off out of her little room. Rob was already in the living area when she walked in. “Hey,” she said quickly, as she tried to control the urge to smile at him.

  “Hey,” Rob said and his eyes met hers for a moment, before he dropped them quickly to the floor. “So, I thought since I kind of like you and I don’t want to see you get poisoned that I’d order in instead of cooking? I mean it’s probably for the best,” he said in a way that made Trina believe that he was feeling nervous over their plans.

  “Sure, I’d rather not die,” she said and then she laughed at how serious Rob was looking over her comment. “It’s all gravy,” she said with a smile, before she took a seat on the couch. “Can I ask you something though?”

  “Sure.”

  “What is this? I mean like are you considering this a date?” She asked him as though it was no
big deal, but she could feel her cheeks deceiving her cool composure as they started to burn.

  “Well, if you’d be alright with that,” Rob said, as his eyes met hers. He felt stupid for not making it clear to her before. He should have made sure that she knew it was date. What if she didn’t want a date and he’d just made everything awkward?

  “Cool,” Trina said with a little nod that put all of Rob’s worries to shame.

  Rob ordered the food and Trina brought a few beers from the fridge and then they both found themselves sitting on the couch, as they tried to find a way to break the awkward ice that had seemed to have developed between them.

  “Are you nervous about the drop off?” Trina asked eventually, so that at least something had been said.

  “No, not really,” Rob answered her quickly. He looked relieved that the silence had finally been broken. “I mean it’s a big job, but my men can handle it.”

  A knock on the door played through the apartment and Rob went to answer the door. After Trina’s initial question the conversation started flowing and without realizing it, Trina was starting to have the best time. Rob was funny, sweet and impossibly hot. He didn’t look like he belonged to the world that he did. He looked like he belonged on a runway show. His abs were tight, his skin tanned and his hazel coloured eyes had the depth of melted chocolate.

  Trina wasn’t sure who started it. They’d both had a few too many beers and the laughter had been loud. They kissed though. Rob’s hot little mouth pressed against her cherry red lips, as she slipped out her tongue and started to play with his. The kiss was packed with urgency though too. It was like from the moment it started they both knew that it couldn’t end there.

  Trina’s hands were running all over Rob’s body. She was letting her fingers trace the line of his abs, until her fingers had sunk low onto his waistline. She could feel Rob’s hands, as they pulled off her shirt and then ran down her bare back as her breasts became exposed for him to see. He brought his hands round to them and cupped them for a moment. He let his fingers slide over her hardening nipples, until she was almost begging him to fuck her.