Blind Trust

by Peiri Ann

  Me: I heard about that…

  Grimmer: Maybe she has something to do with it.

  I weighed my options, deciding if I was going to take the offer or not. I wasn’t in desperate need of cash but two million was a lot to pass up, and taking her out would be easy as pie, the easiest two million dollars I’d ever made. I knew where she lived and the door stayed open all the time. I could have Janet set something up where I could meet them… Nah, I’d keep Janet out of it. They were close friends and Janet wouldn’t help me do that. Then again, Valerie Harper did have a hit out on me and my family and I couldn’t ignore the fact that though she could’ve killed them, she didn’t. She even covered up her tracks by turning up bodies to keep them off us. That was the only way her agency could’ve had Mom and Anna listed as terminated.

  That was when it dawned on me. She was looking out for me. But why? She hated me…

  The phone rang, startling me. I knew this 888 number all too well.

  “This is Shultz.”

  “Shultz, it’s Johnson. We need you to come in.”

  “Nope.”

  “We have an assignment that would be more—”

  “What? Strategic, accurate, precise—stop me when I’m close—quickly executed…”

  “That’s enough. It would work out better if it were you that were going out.”

  “I have some things going on here that need my attention. I can’t be out of the picture that long.”

  “Shultz, we’ll double your salary. You’ll make the rules. You can set up the plan.”

  “Tempting.”

  Johnson stayed silent for a brief second. “What do you say?”

  “Once I quit something I don’t go back to it. You’re on your own. But thanks for considering me.” I hung up. It was their third request for me in the last week. I couldn’t go out there and leave Mom here. She was up and down, and Purcell wanted me to go across the world. I couldn’t be that far away, for Chrissy’s and my mother’s sake.

  I wasn’t going to keep this game going on between Valerie Harper and me any longer. I intended to let her know I knew, tell her that her name came up, and then I’d look out for her so she didn’t end up dead.

  I changed and went to her house. I assumed she wouldn’t be here yet, so I waited by the wall near her door.

  Over an hour passed before she and Janet came up the stairs, both of them drunk, loud and laughing.

  “Just the guy I hoped would be standing outside my door,” Valerie Harper slurred.

  “I knew it!” Janet exclaimed with a hiccup. “You do like him!”

  I slid open the door for them and they sauntered in. She didn’t tell me to leave so I walked in behind them, sliding the door closed.

  They kicked off their shoes and attacked the kitchen, scarfing down whatever food met their fingers. Tonight was not the night to tell her.

  “Wait,” she said to me when I turned for the door. “You just wait.” She passed me, heading to what looked to be her bathroom.

  I waited.

  She closed the door behind her and I shifted to Janet, who was laying herself down on the couch. She was singing a song she didn’t know the tune to and quickly passed out.

  Valerie Harper came out of the bathroom, her mint green dress still hugging her body. The updo she’d had her hair in had vanished and her dark locks fell around her face. She had those cute bangs out again. When she wore her hair down, they framed her face.

  “You have somehow crowded my mind,” she said, coming over to me.

  “I think you’ve had a little too much to drink, Spirit.”

  “Even with that being said”—she poked my chest with her finger—“you need to get out of my head. And stay out,” she ordered.

  “Let me help you make it to the couch.” I pulled her, but she resisted.

  “No, you listen to what I have to say.” She stepped back to lean her back against the wall. “I’ve spent so much of my time just looking at you.”

  I raised an interested brow. “Don’t say something to me you wouldn’t say if you were sober, Spirit,” I said, trying to cut her off. She was going to tell me what I already knew and I didn’t want her to wake up in the morning, realize she had drunkenly babbled, and hate herself.

  She looked to her left, her expression turning remorseful. “I fell in some type of love with a guy I thought didn’t know I existed. Then one day he notices me and turns my entire world upside down. He is a nice guy and I have a job to do.” She looked up at the ceiling, her face flushed red, irritation blooming in her expression. “But I can’t do it. An assignment has never been this damn difficult. I’ve always been so certain about everything. But I was required to do some very bad things. And because I couldn’t do them, because I didn’t want to hurt him, I had to do some other bad things. And one bad thing isn’t necessarily better than the other because it’s all a pretty fucked-up situation. But then… time is passing. And I have to turn up with something or that’s my head.” She shrugged.

  I took in all of that. I felt like I was invading her privacy allowing her to tell me all this stuff, knowing if she was sober she wouldn’t. “It’s okay, Spirit. You should go sleep it off.”

  I headed for the door and she pulled me back, pulled me to her. Close to her.

  I expected her to smell like vodka or tequila, but she smelled like toothpaste and mouthwash, a grapefruit-scented face wash, and a soft hair spray.

  Her hands climbed up to my shoulders. “You feel so much better than any man I’ve touched, Shultz. And whatever that is”—she breathed and her eyes slightly closed as they rolled—“smells fucking amazing on you.” She grabbed my neck, yanked me to her, and kissed me.

  I immediately gave in, giving way to the nonsensical desire I had for her.

  Her lips were tantalizingly soft, her tongue, cravingly warm, and her skin was pleasingly smooth. Her soft moans, the sound of her moaning was arousing. All of me wanted to keep at it. Kissing her, smelling her, feeling her, letting her feel me, and continue to dip her hand under my shirt and touch my skin… causing a blazing fire to shoot through my veins.

  But I couldn’t. I pulled back. “Spirit, you’re incredibly drunk.”

  She shook her head and rolled her eyes behind her closed lids. “No, I’m not, Kyle Shultz. I know everything that’s going on. Just once more,” she begged, opening her eyes. Their color was a tad darker, from the widening of her pupils. She licked her lips, like she was tasting me and bit her lip like she wanted more of whatever taste I left there. “Please,” she uttered.

  Dammit. She pulled me to her again, rolled her tongue over my bottom lip and kissed it.

  The temptation built in my chest, causing me to swell with air, taking too deep of a breath that stalled coming out.

  She pulled my arms around her waist and kissed me again. My wisdom spiraled toward the pits of hell as I parted my lips and swept my tongue over hers. I tasted her sins; a toxic temptation tainted by the sweetness of innocence. It was too fucking addictive.

  Succumbing, I stepped to her, pressing her against the wall. Skipping over her jaw to her neck, she tangled her fingers in my hair. I bent slightly to kiss over her collarbone, her chest, making my way to the other side my lips craved to be pressed against. She smelled nice, something soft, and I could only smell it with being this close to her.

  The soft moans singing from her lips had me rapt. “Kyle,” she moaned my name and I wanted an escape. It sounded too perfect, it flowed from her effortlessly, and it had to be the wrong name, because I was the wrong guy.

  I felt like a total dick. “Spirit, I can’t,” I said, backing away.

  “Why?” she whispered, pulling me back.

  “You have a boyfriend,” I reminded her. If she was in love with this man like she told me she was, I couldn’t understand why she needed reminding, or why I needed to tell her why I couldn’t blatantly give it to her against her wall, in front of our passed out friend on her couch. I gave her the benefit of the
doubt because she was wasted.

  She slowly nodded. “Boyfriend.”

  “Yeah.”

  Silence swept the room. She gently kissed my cheek, wrapped her hands around my arms, kissed my neck, breathed me in, and said, “I have a boyfriend…”

  “Um hum,” I confirmed, feeling like this conversation should be turned around. My words should be hers and her actions should be mine. I wanted this… I wanted to be so deep inside her she’d forget about him, she’d forget about this hit. A desperate interest for Spirit ignited in me and I needed to fuel it. But none of this made sense, the girl wanted me dead, and yet, there I was… gazing deep in her drunken eyes full of wonder, drowning in her wide, black pupils lacking insight. It was too much and not nearly enough.

  But I couldn’t… I shouldn’t…

  She moved my hand over her tight, rounded ass to her firm thigh she was raising beside my leg.

  Denial was futile. I’m never able to fight against myself.

  I grabbed it, sliding my hand over its smoothness to the hem of her dress. Her leg lifted higher, rising her dress, inviting me to roam up to the bottom of her bare ass. Her hand met mine and forced me to dig my nails into it as I squeezed. She purred in my ear, rolling her tongue over my lobe, as she fist my hair.

  Tempted, I reached under her thigh, just wanting to lay a finger on it.

  No panties. No fucking panties! There was nothing to give me a struggle, nothing to force a don’t do it, Kyle in my judgment.

  The heat steamed off her, ninety-eight degrees, attracting my fingers to her plump lips like a magnet. She moaned in my ear as I smoothed over them vastly joined by a light wetness creeping from their crease.

  A groan rumbled in my throat. I broke, had both her legs wrapped around my waist, my hands clutched on her ass, and her mouth smashed against mine. Our breaths were heavy as we aggressively devoured each other, coddling in what had to be a beautiful nightmare. She rolled her hips against me and I craved to know how it felt. If it was wet, thick, and smooth… I needed to feel it, I wanted to slide inside her.

  My name, she crooned and sent a shock over my skin.

  Fuck! I shouldn’t be here. The fuck was I doing. I shouldn’t be touching her like this. I shouldn’t be kissing her like she’s my woman and she belongs to someone else.

  I was hard as a brick of gold and was already regretting my next move. “No, Spirit. Stop. I can’t.” Stopping was the right thing to do, the only way I was going to be able to look myself in the mirror and be proud of the man I saw.

  I leaned away from her, but couldn’t force myself to let her go. Our gazes locked, hers was so far from sober she probably wouldn’t remember any of this in the morning.

  She blinked.

  I breathed.

  The wall was to her back, helping me support her weight. She leaned against it and pushed her hands over my chest. I could see the wheels turning as she thought.

  After seconds ticked by, she said, “What if I didn’t have a boyfriend? Then maybe?”

  “Not tonight,” I uttered, overcome by the feeling of her dainty fingers subtly sliding over my neck and nails lightly scraping my skin. “Stop, Spirit.”

  She tried to get me closer but I held my ground. “Then when?”

  “When you were sober.”

  “God, Kyle. Why do you have to be such a nice guy?” I have no fucking idea.

  I carried her to her room and laid her down in her bed. “I want to talk to you, Spirit. I’ll come by after class tomorrow, okay?”

  “Don’t leave.”

  “Your boyfriend would be mad if I stayed. Your boyfriend would be upset about a lot of our actions tonight.”

  “Damn him!” she blurted out and then grumbled, turning onto her side. I covered her up with her blanket and grazed my hand over her cheek as her eyes closed. She was beautiful without make-up, with make-up. I don’t know how I missed her before. A year’s time. I should’ve seen her, noticed her at some point. I still couldn’t have her because of her boyfriend, but I could’ve at least talked to her. I leaned in to kiss her cheek, hearing something crinkle under her pillow near my hand.

  A blank envelope had invisible letters on it that said Kyle, remove my contents and read them.

  I took a quick glance at Valerie Harper. She was passed out, lips apart, softly snoring.

  Turning my back to her, I removed the folded paper from the white envelope. I was sure it told me to read it. As I read, a heavy guilt sank down on my shoulders. She’d lost her parents, she’d killed two Reynolds, and she was in love with me. I didn’t know this girl three months ago and she loved me.

  I peeked over my shoulder at her. She’d lied to me about having a boyfriend to push me away. To help her do her job… that she still couldn’t do.

  Folding the paper the way she’d had it, I put it back in the envelope, and stuffed the envelope back under her pillow. I brushed stray locks from her face and looked her over. I had no idea… Not nearly over my shock, I kissed her cheek and whispered “Thank you” in her ear.

  I left her room to raid her closet in search of another blanket to lie over Janet. Finding one, I headed over to her. I took the pins and clips from her hair so she could sleep comfortably, and unzipped her dress because it looked like it was squeezing the life out of her. I kissed her head and left the two of them to their drunken dreams.

  I never learn my lesson. Vodka equals headaches in the morning, Val. Stop drinking it!

  My lips tingled, feeling the after-effects of something I’d missed out on. I briefly blamed it on the effects of the alcohol until I remembered seeing Kyle in my bedroom.

  My head whipped to the right, looking to the other side of the bed. I was relieved to find it empty.

  Oh, thank God. If I had done anything with Kyle I would try to kill myself.

  “Val, I’m late for my first class. I’ll see you later. I borrowed some of your clothes.” Janet was sliding the door closed as she finished her sentence.

  “Okay, Janet. See you later,” I mumbled.

  My cell rang. It was the agency. “Hello.”

  “I specifically told you to not go after the person who caused your parents’ accident!” Claudia yelled into the phone.

  “Claudia, stop yelling.” I yawned. “I didn’t do anything.”

  “Yes, you did. Suddenly the boy comes up dead.”

  “So what. People die every day.”

  “He hanged himself.”

  “So what? People kill themselves every day.” I pulled the covers over my head, ready to go back to sleep the moment I hung up.

  “I’m beginning to think your job is becoming too much for you.” She calmed and softened her voice. “With everything that happened to your parents and your recent response to orders and new assignments, we’re pulling you off the Shultz assignment. Someone will replace you tonight.”

  I jumped up, no longer tired or hung over. “What?” I shouted into the phone. “You cannot take me off this assignment. I’ve been busting my ass out here for you. And right at the end you want to remove me and give someone else the credit for all the hard work I’ve done. You must be out of your mind, Claudia!”

  “The confirmation you sent for Kyle’s mother matches the crime scene photos of the murder of Denis Reynold’s wife.” I stayed quiet, trying to seem unmoved. “We haven’t had the time to investigate further, but some questions have arisen.”

  “What kind of questions?” I asked, as if her statement insulted me.

  “Whether you are capable of doing your job.”

  Son of a bitch! “I believe I’ve been working for you all since I was eighteen. That’s four years I’ve been taking on assignments. I’ve taken more lives than the years of my own life. I’ve bent over backward for you all, dedicated my life to this. Most times I was required to change my life, including for this assignment. And you have to question if I’m capable of doing my job? Have I ever done anything less than kiss your ass, save your ass, and keep your ass in a job,
because of the amazing job that I do?”

  “I do not doubt you—”

  “Fuck you, Claudia. You want me out… I’m out.”

  I hung up the phone and ripped the plugs for Cohen’s computers, Internet, GPS, everything from the outlets. I was so angry at their lack of confidence in me, their complete ignorance of the time and energy I put into this job, it all pissed me off. And with them pulling me off the assignment, it was now out of my hands. Kyle, his sister, Mrs. Shultz, that beautiful little girl…all their lives were on the line. I had to warn him.

  I hurried to shower and changed into some jeans and a shirt before racing out to Kyle’s apartment. I ran the entire way and was panting, craving air by the time I reached his door.

  I knocked loudly. If I was right, this morning he would have slept in. Our first class wasn’t until one. I knocked again and he opened his door, standing in front of me in nothing but shorts.

  I was drawn speechless, looking him over. The thick muscles in his chest was distracting. “Um.”

  He rubbed his hand over his tired face. “What’s up, Spirit? You beating me to the punch?”

  “What punch?” I asked, breathing a little easier.

  He stepped aside. “Come in so we can talk.”

  “Can you put on some clothes?” I asked, walking past him, avoiding looking at his body.

  “Yeah, I’ll be right back. Make yourself comfortable.” He closed the door behind me and left for his room.

  I stood in the living room admiring his setup. A woman definitely had decorated this. It looked like Janet’s style. Two walls were painted a forest green, and two walls, the boards and ceiling remained white. His single couch and loveseat were grey, and his end tables and coffee table were black and topped with tinted glass. He had a bar counter in his kitchen and on it was a wooden bowl that held fake fruit. In his dining room was a dinette table, decorated with plates and placemats. It didn’t look like anyone ever ate on it. But everything was dust free.

  I sat on the couch and sank into it, it was so comfortable. Along the back of the couch was a throw. One of those thick comfy ones that warmed you the instant you snuggled in it. I ran my hand over its plush fabric and leaned in to smell it. It smelled just like him and I imagined him lying on this couch with this blanket thrown over him, watching a movie on the oversized television that was set on the forest green wall across from the couch.