by K E Osborn
“Sorry, looks like I made a mess. Got caught up in the moment… I’ve had a day.”
Trixie grips my bicep. “Well, I’ve just made a batch of macarons. You wanna take some back to the clubhouse and try them for me, make sure I got the ratios right?”
I chuckle. “Oooh, ‘macarons’…” I use air quotes, “… I’m sure they’re awesome.” These are definitely not for front of store sale. She wants to make sure the ratio of sweet treat to weed is good to go before we sell them.
I got her back.
I’m more than happy to test them.
I need to space out for a while, anyway. I’m sick of this damn day. “Fuck trying them at the clubhouse, I’ll eat them now. Show me the way!”
“Lizzy, can you watch the store while I head out back?” Trixie calls out to her staff member.
“Sure thing!”
Trixie turns, leading me through the kitchen into the back area. She walks me to a concealed door, opens it, and we enter, making sure to pull it shut behind us. I furrow my brows, but then when I see the safe door, I realize what’s going on. Trixie punches in the code, it beeps, then she pulls on the heavy handle, and it opens. As we walk through, she looks back at me smiling, the door automatically shuts once we pass through into the small vestibule chamber where plastic see-through blinds hang down. Pushing our way through to a roller door, she slides it up, and instantly the smell hits me. It’s then I realize why there are so many safety precautions. The barricades need to be in place to block out the pungent smell of the product as well as to hide its existence.
We walk further inside, and there’s row after row of benches which line the large area, all packed with what look like desserts that are ready to go. There’s even a refrigerated section. Along the back wall is the kitchen, complete with multiple industrial stoves, sinks, white goods, you name it.
This is an elite setup.
Nycto and Trixie did good!
I like how covert this all is. “You must love this part of the store.”
She shrugs. “It certainly brings in a hell of a lot more money than out the front, but those who purchase these goods generally buy in bulk, and we ship the product out to them in a mass-production enterprise.”
“Okay, show me these treats.”
She hesitates but walks me over to a bench where a tray of green macarons sits. “Green… creative,” I mock.
She rolls her eyes. “They’re lime-flavored.”
“Okay, let’s do this.” I pick one up, it’s smooth in texture on the outside, and as I bite into it, it’s a little chewy but soft. The tang of the lime hits me immediately and tastes a lot like her Key lime pie. I can’t taste the dope at all, and the flavor is incredible. Swallowing the whole thing down, I lick my lips. “This is fucking delicious, Trix.”
I reach out to pick up another one, but her eyes widen while her hand comes out, stopping me just as I go to put it in my mouth. “You really shouldn’t if you plan on riding back any time soon.”
I scoff, shoving the whole thing in my mouth at once. “One more for the road,” I say with my mouth full of the tasty treat.
Trixie grimaces, shaking her head. “You really should let it hit you and mellow out before you take off, VP.”
I wave my hand through the air. “I’m built outta brick, Trix, I’ll be fine. I’ll let you know how it goes, though, okay?” I turn to walk out of this elite fucking setup to the main café, with Trixie following me apprehensively.
As I make it to the front of the café, West strolls inside for protective detail.
My skin begins to prickle. My head starts to feel like it’s floating or spinning, not sure which. Clearing my throat as I walk over to West, I grip his shoulder looking directly into his eyes. I see my reflection in them and swear my irises are red, so I blink a few times, which knocks my reflection from his eyes.
He tilts his head, studying me. “You okay, VP?”
“Call me if there are further problems. I dealt with the idiots who were here, so I don’t expect any further issues.” I ignore him.
West nods.
I slap his back, then turn for the exit. “Void,” Trixie calls out. I turn back to look at her and blink a few more times to get things into perspective.
Is there two of her?
“Ride slowly, okay?”
I give her a two-fingered salute, heading out the door toward my ride. The shining chrome is even brighter for some strange reason. I blink rapidly again, shielding my eyes as I walk over, then slide quickly onto my bike. The drugs and alcohol in my system are working their way through my body right now.
I know I shouldn’t ride, but the trip home is short.
I know I can make it.
As I take off, my bike lurches. I widen my eyes, not anticipating the speed in which I accelerate. Still, I hang on, taking all the appropriate turns, focusing on the road with all my attention. I need to keep focused, so I make it back in one fucking piece.
I’m not sure how, but as my eyes focus, I try to take in my surroundings and figure out where the hell I am. From what I can tell, I’m about twenty minutes in the opposite direction of the clubhouse out on Van Dyke Road. Fairly sure my bike’s swerving, so I try to correct it, zoning my eyes in on the road like a hawk. The trees either side of this stretch of asphalt is monotonous. There’s a sense of foreboding creeping in and taking hold of me.
I need to keep focused.
I blink rapidly, narrowing my eyes, but a white statue up ahead on the edge of the road catches my attention. As I approach, I take my eyes off the road, for a mere second, only one second.
The statue isn’t a statue at all—it’s an image of my father.
Panic sears through me, my body jerking. I pull on the throttle instinctively, making my back tire squeal and then slide out from under me. My bike hitches, turning to the side, catching on something, then I’m hurtled off over the handlebars. I fly through the air as my bike somersaults along the road. Metal scratching, breaking, and squealing grinds in my ears as I fly across the top of the asphalt, the whole thing playing out in slow-fucking-motion. Then I tense, bracing for impact, slamming hard on the road. Sliding along, my body rolls with the friction, and I groan as my arms graze up to high hell tearing my skin to pieces with gravel rash. My jeans rip apart as I come to a stop in a ditch at the side of the road.
My head spins like a motherfucker, and my body aching so damn much I wanna hurl. I look around and see my bike is resting against a tree in the ditch a few feet away from me. I lay on my back, looking up at the sky, panting for breath as the clouds form multiple skulls and crossbones in the sky.
I know I’m still fucking tripping as I lay in the ditch, broken and bleeding.
I’m not sure how long I lay here for, staring up at the skulls. I swear they’re mocking me, but I need to do something. I can’t just lay here tripping. My hand slides into my jeans pocket for my cell.
Coughing, my entire body tenses, the pain incredible as I bring my cell into my line of sight and dial the number I need right now—Nerve.
“VP! Everything okay at Trixie’s?”
I grimace, shifting on the ground to try and get some semblance of comfort. “Nerve… I’m tripping hard. I’ve eaten asphalt, brother, in a bad way.”
“Fuck! How bad are you hurt? Do you need an EMT?”
I glance down at my legs, where there are no obvious open fractures. “No, I’m good, you should be able to patch me up. My ride, not so much.”
“Okay, hold on… I’m coming. I’ll have Voltage track your cell.”
“Thanks, brother.” I end the call, dropping my cell to the ground because I’m too fucked-up to keep talking.
Trying to hide those fucking skull clouds from my sight, I slump my arm over my eyes.
Goddammit! I should have listened to Trixie. I should have brought the macarons home with me, but no, I was in a downward spiral because of Ivy and thought I could handle it. But this, this is just plain stupid.
Nycto’s gonna fucking kill me, and I am gonna deserve it!
Groaning, somehow I find the strength to sit, then pull myself out of the ditch. I move to the edge of the road and sit, waiting for Nerve to show up. I peer over my shoulder at my mangled ride. Wincing, I turn back to the other side of the road—I must still be tripping because those shadows are back.
My anxiety creeps in further as they dart to and fro in the forest in front of me. Black shadows are moving far too fast for anything to be real, then the white statues appear, slowly edging their way out from the trees.
“Fuck off, all of you,” I yell.
Now, I’m really losing my mind.
Yelling at my own imagination.
As the white statues show their faces, I tense up. They’re all people from my past. I clench my eyes shut, trying like hell to wipe them from my memory, attempting to fight the images from my mind. When I open my eyes again, they’re still there, and this time, my father is back, but he’s just standing there. He’s not saying anything, quietly watching me fall apart in my mind.
It’s fitting.
They would so do that.
“I said… Fuck. Off!”
The squealing of tires echoes in the distance. I turn my head, the tow truck heading toward me like one of those mirages people see in the desert. I feel like it’s only been a few minutes, but it must have been quite a while for Nerve to grab the tow truck and get everything in order to find me.
Man, tripping makes you lose all sense of time.
I turn back, the statues are now retreating into the forest. “Ha! Yeah, you better run, you motherfuckers!” I call out to them as the tow truck pulls over, and Nerve rides up on his bike, pulling in front of me. Nerve hops off, the same time a door to the truck pushes open, then Ivy comes surging toward me.
Am I still tripping?
Ivy drops to her knees beside me, placing her hand on my cheek. The second she touches me, a spark shoots straight through me to my dick.
Is she really here?
“Jesus, Void, what have you done to yourself?”
I take her in. She’s glowing, my high making her seem like a real-life, fucking heaven-sent angel. I swear she even has a halo as I stare blankly up at her.
Nerve steps over with a Thermos. “Drink this, dickhead.” Nerve shoves it at me, and I reach out to take it. The Thermos smells of coffee, and as I take a sip, the bitter hit instantly soothes the wrecking ball of my mind. My eyes dance over Ivy as she checks me, relaying the information to Nerve, while Brass loads my ride onto the flatbed.
Nerve drops to Ivy’s side as she presses my ribs. I jerk, and her eyes shoot to Nerve. “Could be broken. We need to get him back to the clubhouse quick, sober his ass up, before the heat catches wind of this,” Nerve grunts.
Ivy runs her hand over my arm in a soothing gesture. “Why the hell did you ride so out of it, Void? You could’ve killed yourself?”
I shake my head, unable to answer her. She’s simply too fucking gorgeous right now that she has rendered me speechless. Or maybe, I’m too fucking smashed.
Nerve moves in to help hoist me up. As he does, pain sears through my body. I let out a loud groan as Nerve moves under one arm, Ivy under the other, and they walk me to the cab of the truck. Nerve and Brass hoist me up inside.
Ivy sits beside me as Nerve and Brass talk outside, leaving Ivy and me alone.
I try to gather my rampant running thoughts, but I can’t keep my stupid mouth from moving on its own. “You came to check on me…”
Ivy turns to face me, her brows scrunched together. “Of course, Void. No matter what weird stalemate we’re in right now, I do care about you.”
I bring my bloodied hand up, caressing her gorgeous face. “You’re beautiful.”
Her eyes widen as Nerve steps up into the driver’s side of the cab, handing me my cell. “I’m gonna drive. Keep an eye on him, make sure he doesn’t tank or anything on the way home,” he directs Ivy.
I lean my head back, tired as fuck, sore as hell, and completely the fuck out of it. I don’t think I hit my head, so I doubt I have a concussion, so I’m going to take a nap. It won’t be as good as the nap I had this morning with Ivy, but she’s right here, so maybe it might be as peaceful.
Closing my eyes, I move my hand out to link with hers. She doesn’t hesitate to thread her fingers with mine.
There’s my sweet thing.
Chapter Ten
VOID
My eyes flutter open, my head pounding, my body aching like a motherfucker as I grimace when I try to move. Not to mention the hangover I’m now sporting thanks to all the booze and weed I ingested.
Nice going, dickhead.
Glancing down, my shirt’s off, and my ribs are a shade of deep purple and red. My forearms are covered in bandages. I peer further down, my legs are bare, I’m wearing boxer briefs, and my shins are covered in bandages as well. I groan, moving to sit, but my head spins.
“Stop!” a concerned voice yells out, and it shocks the hell out of me.
I turn as Ivy’s moving from the desk chair opposite me to the edge of the bed.
I didn’t even realize she was in here.
Even with a slightly clearer head than earlier, she’s still fucking perfect.
Ivy reaches out, gently easing me back onto the bed. “You need to rest. You have some serious road rash, and Nerve is pretty sure you’ve cracked a rib or two.”
Exhaling as I sink back down into the soft pillows, I gaze up at her. “How long have I been out?”
She touches my stomach, my muscles clenching beneath her electrifying touch. “Hours… I don’t even know how many exactly. I fell asleep for a while, but I’ve spent the time making sure you came down okay.”
Goddamn!
“I didn’t mean for it to interact like that… I… I just didn’t care.”
She draws her bottom lip in with her teeth. “Because of me?”
“I can’t put that blame on you, Ivy. I drank too much, then ate two of Trixie’s macarons, and she warned me. It was my choice. This isn’t your fault.”
Ivy huffs, then she stands back, confusion written with how tightly her eyebrows are pulled together. “What are we doing, Void?”
I furrow my brows in response. “I don’t know.”
“I’m gonna be straight with you…” My eyes widen, she’s always so assertive. It’s one of the many qualities I adore about her. “When I overheard Nerve taking your call, and I thought you were really hurt, I’ve never felt such panic in all my life.”
“You were worried about me?”
She scoffs. “Void, I was petrified you were going to die, and things between us would be left in this weird limbo. I hate this, Void. This chasm you have built between us. How did we get like this?”
Grimacing, I can’t lay here for this talk, even though my body’s screaming at me not to move. I attempt to sit, and Ivy’s eyes widen as she tries to stop me. So, I push her hand away and shift up the bed with my muscles pulling and burning every inch of me as I try to hold in a groan, but I am not entirely successful.
Eventually, I find a more comfortable position, then look her in the eyes. “Ivy, this distance between us is all on me. It’s nothing you’ve done. You’re perfect. Actually, too fucking perfect—”
“I don’t understand. We’re friends, aren’t we?”
Friends? That word burns more than I thought it would.
“Yeah… friends.”
She turns up her nose with an exhale. “Then why avoid me? Why not just talk to me, tell me what you’re feeling?”
“I’m not sure what I’m feeling. All I do know is you, as you are, are the most beautiful fucking soul I have ever known. I don’t want to be the one to ruin that.”
Ivy’s eyes begin to glisten, her bottom lip trembling as she moves slowly. I furrow my brows while she climbs onto the bed, sliding in right beside me. Her hand comes up to my face forcing me to look at her. “But maybe I want to be ruined,” she whisp
ers before gently pressing her lips against mine.
My eyes widen as my lips tingle. My muscles stiffen as I try to recover from the shock of her tongue, forcing its way into my mouth, but no, instead, I’m fucking done for. The second I taste her, I lose myself. My eyes clench tight, trying to keep myself under control, but I need to touch her. To feel her. My hand sweeps up into her chestnut hair, my fingers sweeping through the silky strands. My fingers lock around the tendrils, pulling her lips to me harder. Warmth infuses my skin as tingling starts in my chest then spreads outward all over my body. My chest squeezes tight, and my body reacts.
I feel fucking powerful and somehow rendered useless at the same time.
I let out a low moan into her mouth, and she pulls back dramatically, her eyes locking on mine. “I must be hurting you.”
“Don’t stop! The pain is worth it.” I draw her back to me. My lips take possession of hers. Kissing Ivy is taking every ounce of strength in me to keep this tame. But the way her tongue’s caressing mine, the way a light whimper escapes her throat as she leans into me, fuck if she’s not the single sexiest woman on the face of this godforsaken earth.
I have no clue how the hell we’re going to calm this down.
Do I even want to calm it down?
The way Ivy’s kissing me isn’t how you would think your typical virgin should kiss. Not an innocent shy girl, anyway. Ivy’s full of lust, she’s ravenous for me, and I know I’m fucked.
My free hand slides down to her hip, my fingers digging in, the animal in me begging to be set free.
Suddenly, Ivy moves, her leg slides out over the top of me in a straddling position, her pussy sitting right on top of my aching cock as we continue the kiss, which is becoming more aggressive. That little move right there has my balls aching so fucking much right now, overriding the damn pain in my ribs.
My hands slide up her back, holding her to me, her fingers threading through my hair as she grinds down on my cock.
Instant hard-on.
Fuck.
I groan into her mouth, the sensation sending a wave of pleasure deep inside me. All I’ve thought about, all I dream about is having Ivy like this, and now, it’s here.