Just A Man (The Porter Trilogy Book 1)

by Shannon Youngblood

  “Don’t, Alex, don’t ruin this. That was amazing, and hot, and I’ve never felt more safe in my life. I loved it,” I said, my face blushing.

  I felt the tension slowly leave his body until he was completely relaxed and drawing lazy circles on my arm.

  “Do you have any plans tomorrow night?” I asked.

  “I have a ton of work to catch up on. Today was kind of a wash with everything that happened. Why do you ask?” his eyebrows lifting.

  “I want to go out dancing with my friends. I feel like I haven’t seen Danny in forever, and with all the bullshit I’ve been going through, I just need a night to relax.”

  When he didn’t respond for a few minutes, I turned in his arms to look at him. He was frowning. I could see him thinking hard, but I didn’t know what he needed to think about. I was my own person and could decide if I wanted to go out for the evening. I know he just wanted to protect me, so in an effort to not ruin what we had just shared, I attempted to keep my anger in check.

  “I don’t think that’s a good idea, Charlotte,” he stated, matter of factly.

  I scrunched my brow together at his words.. “I’m going anyway,” I said petulantly, “I’ll invite Jerry and Brigitte and we’ll all stay together”

  He was thinking about how to go forward, and for that I appreciated him even more. He didn’t want to demand me not to go, but he wanted to keep me safe.

  “Will you take Bracks with you?” He put up his hand at my protest. “It would make me feel much more secure to know that someone I trust was with you. He’ll stay away, but be able to keep a watch on you in case anything happens. Please?”

  I couldn’t deny him when he said please like that. He looked like a little boy asking for a cookie, and who was I to tell him no if it made him feel better? I thought back to just a little while ago, watching him thrash on the bed and the way his scream gripped my heart so tight I couldn’t breathe. Something had happened to my big strong man that would sometimes leave him weak and vulnerable, and I couldn’t, no, I wouldn’t be the cause of that look, ever!

  “I’m ok with that as long as he is,” I said, smiling when he grinned at me.

  “He’s my employee, Charlotte, he’d be fine if I told him to wear only a g-string to the club.”

  “Oh God, Alex, don’t you dare!” I said, swatting his shoulder. I knew he was joking and his chuckle warmed me.

  He pulled me in for a hug and I cuddled into his embrace, smelling all of him. I loved his scent. It always had the power to relax me and turn off my mind. My eyes were heavy and I could no longer keep them open. It had been such a crazy day that I don’t even know how I stayed awake this long.

  “Goodnight, Alex.”

  “Goodnight my daydreamer. I– I’ll see you in the morning”

  Thursday June 18, 2015- My love is broken, but I’m going to fix him.

  **********

  The next day went by in a blur of activities. I woke up wrapped in Alex’s arms with his erection at my entrance. We did everything slow and leisurely, and my guess was he was trying to make up for the rough sex from a few hours before. I appreciated and needed the tenderness from him.

  We both took a shower and had breakfast together before Bracks drove us to work. My car was no longer in the parking garage, and when I asked, Alex said he had it towed and was being fixed. I worried about the price, but he told me insurance would be covering it, since it happened on work property. One more worry slid from my shoulders.

  The first half of the morning flew by. Bracks escorted me to Starbucks to get coffee for Alex and myself, and to butter them up, I bought one for Jerry and Brigitte. When I asked them if they were interested in going to the bar tonight, they were both totally ecstatic about it. I called Danny while I was out and he was, as well, excited for a night out.

  I had lunch with Alex in his office, and we chatted and laughed about nothing in particular while we ate our Gyros and salads. It was peaceful and nice. When he saw me getting antsy, he laughed and told me to go home and get ready and he would see me tonight after the club. Bracks was bringing me back to his penthouse after the evening was over. I gave him a kiss on the cheek and told him thank you before grabbing my purse and heading for the elevator. Today was turning out to be a much better day than yesterday.

  **********

  I was so excited for a night of frivolity and fun. God knows I needed it. Danny and I drove together with Bracks and met with Jerry and Brigitte there. I was wearing a purple strapless gown that fell just above the knee and had tiny rhinestones all over the chest. I had drawn my hair up into a messy knot bun and pulled a few tendrils down to frame my face. I decided on wearing a bit more makeup than my normal natural look, and Danny said it made my green eyes pop. I felt pretty. I knew that a part of my confidence came from Alex. He made me feel feminine and confident and beautiful. That was probably one of the greatest gifts he could ever give me. If for some reason things didn’t work out for us, that gift was worth everything.

  When we arrived, I greeted Jerry with a double cheek kiss, and Brigitte gave me a huge bear hug. Things must have gotten better for her in the last twenty four hours and that made me smile.

  “Damn, Charlie, you look great! Tonight is going to be so fun!” Brigitte squealed, clearly excited for dancing and drinks.

  I agreed wholeheartedly. I decided not to mention her change in demeanor because I didn’t want to bring her down if something was still wrong. She wanted to get away from life for a bit and have fun, so did I. We would have a blast together and forget about everything but the music pumping in our veins and the alcohol coursing through our bloodstream.

  When we finally made it inside and snagged a booth, I got up to go get the first round of drinks. Everyone put in their order and I headed to the bar. I watched as Bracks’ eyes followed me. Once I got, and paid for, two ‘Cranberry and Vodkas’ for Danny and I, a ‘Sex on the Beach’ for Brigitte and a ‘Jack and Coke’ for Jerry, I headed back to the table to my group. Danny and Jerry were huddled close together, whispering in each other’s ear, and Brigitte was playing on her phone.

  “Hey guys!” I shouted, trying to get their attention, “Here’s the drinks, who wants to go dance?”

  Everyone looked up and grinned, grabbing their drinks and shuffling towards the dance floor. We danced in a tight foursome, twirling and gyrating our hips in time with the music. It was hypnotizing and I felt sexy as hell. Jerry bought the next round of drinks and Brigitte bought the third. I felt loose and relaxed. I always loved dancing, but had always been too self-conscious to do more than sway in time with the beat.

  I watched Jerry and Danny dance in their own little world, their eyes locked together, and it truly made my heart jump into my throat and little teardrops form behind my eyes. I was so happy for my best friend. He deserved the world and Jerry was such a great guy.

  A man came up behind me and put his hands on my hips to grind against my ass, but I wanted no part of it. I turned around and told the heavyset, balding man ‘No, thank you’, but he refused to take the hint. Thankfully, Jerry came to my rescue.

  “I believe the lady said no. Back off!” He gave me a wink and took my glass from me when I finished the last of it. I smiled up at him and resumed my dance, pulling my hair free from its tie and letting loose weeks of pent up frustration.

  At some point, I looked over at Bracks sitting in a nearby booth. He was on the phone and was giving me a weird expression. His left leg was crossed over his right with his ankle sitting on top of his knee, and he had a glass of, I assumed, ice water on the table in front of him. I guessed he was talking to Alex, giving him a play by play of my movements. I giggled a little bit, thinking of Alex back at his office, envisioning me dancing. I bet he was hard as stone. With that in mind, I started dancing for him. It didn’t matter that he couldn’t see me, or that everyone in the room could, I did it all for him. I wanted Bracks to tell him what I was doing, so later tonight I could tell him I was doing it in the hop
e that he was picturing me. Maybe if I was drunk enough, I would give him my own little private version. The thought made me smile. A strip tease was not even in the realm of possibilities to sober Charlotte, but Drunk Charlie could do whatever she wanted.

  After a few more songs, I hobbled my way over to my booth to sit down. My feet ached and my head was foggy. I was never a light weight, so those drinks had to have been super strong to make me feel this dizzy. I took off my shoes and laid them next to the seat, deciding that a quick trip to the bathroom was what I needed. Perhaps, if I splashed some water on my face, it would bring me back to the here and now.

  I don’t know how I made it the fifty feet to the bathroom. I was so drunk I was seeing double of everything. I think I may have even crawled the last five or six feet into the bathroom. When I got into the stall, I couldn’t even stand up to lock it. Alex was going to be so pissed at me for getting so drunk and being so irresponsible. I could already hear him now scolding me.

  I was leaning against the side of the stall, in a club bathroom, wearing an itty bitty dress, and not longer able to keep my eyes open. Alex would definitely have something to say to me tomorrow.

  This was the weirdest I’d ever felt while drunk, and I had been drunk so many times before. Something wasn’t right. I tried to reach for my phone, but my arms wouldn’t move. Why won’t my arms move?

  I tried to call for help, but my mouth wouldn’t open. I was screaming the words in my head, louder and louder. I couldn’t stand, I couldn’t crawl. Oh God! I was going to die in the bathroom of a club. I felt the tears fall from my eyes and down my cheeks and I couldn’t even lift my hand to wipe them away. The heaviness surrounding me grew thicker and blacker as my mind screamed at me to fight, to get up and fight.

  When I finally decided to give in and let death take me, I heard the door to the bathroom open and my stall door open outwards. I couldn’t lift my head up past the person’s shoes, but I remember thinking, ‘Wow, Alex would love those shoes’, before I let the blackness swallow me whole.

  Chapter 29

  “Charlotte, Charlotte, you need to wake up now. Come back to me baby, please, I can’t lose you. Doctor, what the hell is going on?”

  I heard Alex, but his voice was muffled and far away. I tried to open my eyes, but they were heavy and impossible to open. My head was groggy and my thoughts were limited. Was I still at the club? When had Alex arrived? I couldn’t form a coherent word before I slipped back into oblivion.

  “Charlie, open your eyes, baby girl.”

  That sounded like Danny, although he sounded closer than Alex had. I tried to open my eyes again, but the tug into darkness was too strong to resist.

  “Charlotte Hightower, I demand you open your eyes right now.”

  “Ow, please stop screaming, Alex.” I muttered, slowly opening my lashes and looking around the fuzzy, brightly lit room. Where was I? What happened? I remember showing up to the club, and dancing, but everything else is gone. What the fuck happened?

  “Oh God, your eyes are open. Thank you, Charlotte,” Alex said, grabbing my hand and kissing my palm. He stood up, leaned over, and deposited a kiss on my forehead, “Don’t go back to sleep, I’ll be right back.”

  I groaned at him not to leave, but he must not have heard me. A second later, he came back to my side with a doctor. Was I in a hospital? I felt like closing my eyes again, but the sight of terror in Alex’s eyes kept me lucid for a little while longer.

  “Welcome back, Miss Hightower. How are you feeling?” the doctor asked, scanning me.

  “Like death warmed over,” I moaned, “What happened?”

  “Let me check your vitals, Charlotte, and we’ll talk about what happened.”

  He took out his pocket light thing and shined it in both of my eyes. I winced from the way the light made my head ache, but I didn’t turn away. He took my blood pressure and checked my IV.

  The entire time, Alex sat on the right side of my bed, holding my hand and kissing every inch of skin on it. He looked terrible. His shirt was wrinkled and his hair was messy. His eyes were red and puffy, as if he’d been crying. He looked up at me and gave me a small smile, which made my heart flutter. In the midst of all of this shit, he still made my heart beat fast and my knees weak. God, I loved this man.

  “Your heart rate has increased, Charlotte. Are you ok?” the good doctor asked, visibly worried about my increase in heart rate.

  I felt the heat stain my cheeks and nodded my head. Well, that was embarrassing. I looked back at Alex, who obviously knew where my thoughts were centered because he gave me a wickedly salacious grin.

  I forced myself to look away from him and up to the doctor. I didn’t need more inappropriate thoughts while in the company of another person, let alone my doctor. “Will you tell me what happened, please?” I asked.

  He looked over at Alex and then back at me, silently asking me if I wanted him to leave or not. I definitely wanted him to stay, he was my lifeline.

  “I’d like Mr. Porter to stay, if that’s ok, doc.”

  “Of course, Miss Hightower. From the blood work I took and your symptoms, it would seem you were given Rohypnol this evening.”

  I felt Alex squeeze my hand and, when I looked over, the fury spreading across his face was alarming. His grip on my hand was quite tight and I squeezed back to tell him to loosen up, which he did immediately.

  “Are you saying someone roofied her?” Alex asked through gritted teeth.

  “Yes” he stated, no nonsense.

  “Who would do that to me?” I asked, as more of a rhetorical question. I knew there were a few people who might have had the desire to do it. Robert crossed my mind, and Sarah Mansfield, but, ultimately, the person who did it was the person who was stalking me.

  I felt helpless, and hopeless. I couldn’t live like this. I just wanted to enjoy my life, find a good man, which I had, settle down, have kids, and lead a normal productive life. I started crying, and I hated that I was crying again. How did I even have any more tears left after the last few days? They should all be dried up by now.

  Alex squeezed my hand again, but lightly. When I looked up, I saw the Doctor had left and Alex was looking at me. His look spoke volumes to my aching heart. He was hurting for me. He was mad at himself for allowing me to go and for allowing me to get hurt again.

  “I should have come,” he said, more to himself than me. “I should have been there to protect you. Do you remember any of the evening?” I shook my head, because I didn’t remember much of anything. The fury and sadness in his eyes pierced my heart and I squeezed his hand again to let him know, silently, that I was ok and he was here with me now.

  “The cops are outside the room and they want to ask you some questions. Would that be alright with you, sweetheart?” he asked, waiting for me to answer.

  I grabbed a tissue off the side table and wiped my face before I nodded at him to let them in. The sooner it was over, the sooner I could go home to Alex and be protected in our little bubble.

  Two familiar faces walked in. Officer Collins and Officer Hartmann looked at Alex with a glare before coming to stand next to me on the opposite side of the bed from Alex. Their look confused me, but I didn’t comment.

  “Miss Hightower,” Officer Collins started. “How are you feeling?”

  “I’m better, but I still have a wicked headache. Thanks for asking.”

  “What do you remember about the events of this evening?” Officer

  Hartmann asked. Her voice caught me off guard. For someone so small and demure, she had a velvety, strong, no nonsense voice.

  “Honestly, not much,” I answered truthfully. “I remember getting to the club, ordering the first round of drinks, dancing…uhhhh, I think at some point a guy tried to dance with me, but Jerry made him back off.”

  I felt Alex grip my hand again at the mention of the man trying to dance with me. I’m sure Bracks told him, so he knew about it, but I guess he forgot with the hustle and bustle of everything e
lse that had happened.

  “Did you have your drink at the time the guy approached you?”, Officer Collins asked.

  “I can’t remember.”

  “How many drinks did you have?” Hartmann asked, with a slight edge to her voice that sounded almost reprimanding. I glared at her. I was twenty four years old and didn’t need to be treated like a child.

  I saw Collins shoot her a look before looking back at me, apology written on his face.

  “Three, I think. You may want to ask someone who wasn’t drugged.” I said, not hiding the sarcasm dripping from my words.

  “We have,” Collins said, “and they said three as well. Do you remember having control of your own drink the entire night or did you set it down at all during the evening?”

  “Honestly, I can’t remember. I think I held on to each drink but I may have set it on a table as well. I don’t know, everything is such a blur,” I said, grabbing my head to try and jar some memories out of it.

  “Have you had any other incidents since the phone call?” Collins asked, writing in his pad of paper.

  “Yes,” I said in a whisper. I hadn’t thought to call them after the car incident. I felt immeasurably stupid for not alerting the authorities, but at the time, it was the last thing from my mind.

  Saving me from having to explain why I didn’t call, Alex piped up, “Her tires were slashed and her windows were busted out of her car in my parking garage. I have a security team working on it.”

  “And you didn’t think to notify the police about another attack?” Hartmann bit back.

  I could tell Alex was starting to lose what little patience he had left. “No, I handle my own problems,” he said.

  “Can you tell me where you were tonight, Mr. Porter?” she asked, raising her eyebrows.

  Alex stood up so roughly his chair bounced backwards and toppled over. He was panting and his face was bright red. He looked like a bull ready to charge. If I didn’t get him calmed down, he was going to be arrested for assault or something similar, and I needed him with me, not behind bars.