by T L Swan
He raises a brow in a silent dare and I subtly stand on his foot. What is the problem between these two? She seems to hate him and he apparently hates her more from the looks they’re exchanging.
“Identification, please,” she demands flatly.
I slide my license over the counter along with my two bank cards. She studies them for a moment. “I need to photocopy these and the one out here is broken. I will be back in a minute. I just need to go into the other office.”
“Yes, of course.” I smile gratefully.
She disappears out of sight.
“What’s her problem?” Stace whispers.
“You are her problem. Why are you glaring at her?”
“Because she’s a fucking bitch.”
I roll my eyes. “Will you shut up,” I whisper.
She reappears and rings a bell. A man comes out and gestures to the doorway. We follow him down a long corridor until we get to the end where it opens out to a large square room where the walls are covered in lockers. “Bottom left in the corner,” he murmurs as he points us in the right direction.
“Thank you.” I smile. “I would never have remembered where this was.”
He nods and disappears from where he came from. I smile broadly and take my key to slowly open the safety deposit box.
Stace stands behind me and puts his hand on my hips as he watches me over my shoulder. “Careful of the cameras,” he whispers in my ear.
“I know,” I whisper back. I open the door and see the sock encasing our treasure.
I stand back to let Stace peer in. “My sock?” He raises his eyebrow in question. “A sock is what you chose to put them in?’
“It’s all I frigging had,” I snap quietly. “Beggars can’t be choosers.” I reach in and try to untie the sock while it’s still in the locker. I don’t want the cameras to see what we are doing. It’s dark and my arms are confined.
“How many?” I whisper.
He thinks for a minute. “The five smallest. How long did you say we can keep this here?”
“Two years.”
“Do you reckon five?” he asks.
I think for a minute. “Yeah, maybe. I don’t want to take them all at once in case we get caught.”
“Fuck, don’t say that.”
I struggle to untie the sock in the darkness of the locker.
“What are you doing?” he whispers.
“Trying to untie the damn thing.”
He shakes his head. “Let me bloody do it.” He takes over. “I can’t believe you lied to me and took these,” he whispers as he concentrates on the untying sock challenge.
I screw up my face. “Oh, because you have never lied to me… Mr. Mac.” I sneer sarcastically.
He rolls his eyes. “If I am Mr. Mac, then you are Mrs. Mac. In fact,” he whispers. “You are the Mac Daddy of all Macs.”
I smirk. He’s got me there. I have told some porkies in my life.
He finally gets the sock undone and fiddles around before he takes them out of the sock and lays them out in the bottom of the locker.
“Holy fuck,” he whispers in amazement.
I smile proudly. “I did good?” I know I did, but I just want to hear him say it out loud.
He kisses me quickly on the lips. “You did great, babe.”
He points to the five smallest and I nod as he picks them up. I put my purse into the locker and he loads them into the change compartment.
I smile broadly and his hand drops to my hipbone before he kisses me again, his lips lingering over mine. “We should celebrate tonight.”
“What do you want to do?” I smile.
He shrugs. “Find a bar where they play that hippy song you love so much.”
I smile goofily at him as hope blooms in my chest. Another date. This is the first time that I can remember being truly happy. He knows my story, my fucked up story, and yet he likes me anyway. Nobody has ever known my truth about my life on the run and the shame I feel for having such an evil, fucked up father. Stace and I laugh, we have fun, and I have never had this sense of belonging before. It seemed to happen to everyone around me, but I always thought it was out of my reach. I want to talk to him, I want to tease him, and God I want to fuck him stupid.
But mostly, I just want to call him mine.
He loads the diamonds back into the sock, reties it, and then locks the locker. We gently kiss again and walk back out to the reception hand in hand. I pause and my eyes flicker over to the cranky receptionist. “Just a sec.” I drag him over to the desk. “Excuse me,” I call.
She looks up as if I am annoying her. This chick is so lazy. Do your job, stupid.
“Yes,” she replies flatly.
“I would like to add my husband to the safety deposit box, please.” My eyes flicker between Stace and her.
Stace frowns and he shakes his head subtly.
“Do you want him to have full access or just to be a double signatory?”
“Full access, please,” I state.
She raises her eyebrows as if surprised and then she stands. “You will have to sign some release documents granting permission. I’ll go and get them.” She gestures to the other office and pauses for a moment. “We normally have another girl, but she is off work today. Oh, and I will need your license and identification again, please.”
“Okay.” I nod as I take out my purse.
“I don’t need access,” Stace whispers as he takes my hand.
“Yes, you do.” I pause as I try to think of the right wording. “We both know that my days are numbered.”
His face falls. “They are not. Don’t say that.”
I reach up and cup his face. “He will get me. One day he will get me. I already know my fate. So in that instance, I want you to have the diamonds.”
“I won’t let that happen.”
I smile as a sinking feeling of dread fills the pit of my stomach. I have tried my hardest to not let the past week worry me, but the feeling of pre-empted horror awaiting me is overwhelming. “I will be ready for him when he comes.” I pause. “I’m going to give it my best shot.” I shrug. “You never know. Stranger things have happened, right?”
Stace watches me as a frown crosses his face. “How long have you lived like this?”
“Like what?”
“In fear?”
I swallow the lump in my throat as I contemplate his question. “I guess that’s the thing, I’m not scared anymore. The ship changed me. You changed me.” I hesitate as I try to articulate my thoughts. “I just want to live my life like every day is my last because it could be.” I shrug and am suddenly overcome with emotion, the tears welling in my eyes. “I don’t want to be scared anymore.”
Stace’s eyes hold mine and he bends to gently kiss my lips. “I got your back, babe.”
I run my fingers through his stubble and smile into his warm lips. “I know you do and that’s why I feel brave.”
“Ahem,” the woman interrupts.
We both turn back to her guiltily and she slides the papers across the counter. “Sign here.” She points to a line. “And here.” She points to the next page. “I need you to fill out your email details and you will need to empty the locker on the 15th of June in 2019 by 2pm.”
I smile and watch on as Stace signs his documents and hands them back to her. “I will give you both a copy.” She stands and leaves the room to photocopy the documents and Stace’s eyes find mine.
“You remember that date in case you come back alone,” I whisper.
He kisses me. “It’s not happening. Nobody on Earth could tear me away from you.”
I laugh as I spin. Stace is twirling me as we dance alone in our hotel room. It’s 8 pm and we have been drinking cocktails since 2pm. After researching for most of today, we have found out that the man we need to speak to about selling our diamonds owns a bar two suburbs away. He doesn’t buy them, but he knows people who know people. His bar, The Snake Pit, isn’t open tonight, but he will be there tom
orrow night so we have delayed our moving on plans for two days until we get to see him. I’m kind of glad to be honest. I feel safe here in our little bubble. We have decided that after we sell the diamonds we are heading to Chile and catching a private plane out of South America.
He dips me and holds me down. “How about this move?”
“You’re going to drop me.” I squeal as I laugh.
“That’s the plan.” He dips me farther. We go back farther and farther as he laughs in his cheeky boy way, and suddenly he trips and we go flying onto the floor.
We land with a thud and burst into laughter. Oh, this is so much fun. I’m spread on my back and he hovers over me holding my hands above my head. His face falls serious as he looks down at me. “You didn’t tell me you loved me today,” he says softly.
I smirk. What? “I didn’t know I had to.”
“You do.”
I raise my eyebrows. “At least I said it once.”
He kisses me playfully. “It’s not in my vocabulary.”
My mouth drops open and I laugh out loud. “You are completely shit at this.”
“Am not.” He ravages my neck with his mouth and I squeal in laughter.
“Stop it.” I laugh as I struggle to get away from him.
“Say it,” he demands.
“No.” I laugh as I try to buck him off me.
“Say it.”
“Take me dancing.” I laugh as he bites my neck hard.
“I’m taking you to bed.” He growls into my skin.
“You’re taking me for granted.” I squeal as I try to get him off me.
His mouth drops open and he pulls back to look at my face. “Is that what you think?”
“Well, I do seem to spend a lot of time underneath you.” I smirk.
He grabs me roughly on the behind and drags me underneath him. “I don’t hear you complaining, and for the record, I’m often underneath you, too.”
“I’m not complaining. I’m saying I want to go dancing on a date with my man.”
He watches me for a moment and finally stands to pull me up by the hand. “Let’s go then. See if we can hear that hippy song again.” We’ve been ready for two hours, but keep getting side tracked by each other.
I glance down at him and my hot pink lipstick is all over his shirt from our drunk dancing. “You need to change your shirt.”
He looks down at himself. “Yeah, okay.” He unbuttons his shirt and slides it off. His sun-kissed, broad chest and chiselled abs catch my attention and I have to immediately stop to look at him. He is, without a doubt, the most perfect man I have ever seen. Unable to resist, I bend and kiss him on the ribs just under his chest. His hand instantly drops to the back of my head and I could just keep going down his body. Stop it, focus. Dinner. He’s so damn kissable.
He smirks. “You want it again, nympho?” His hand holds me down and I laugh as I try to escape his claws. I stand and my eyes drop to the lipstick marks that I have left on his body. “Just marking what’s mine.” I smirk.
He glances in the mirror at himself and then lifts his arms and turns to look at the lip marks I have left.
He smiles sexily and throws me a wink.
“What?” I smirk.
“Let’s go. I got an idea.”
“You are totally fucking crazy,” I whisper.
“Crazy for you.” He smirks.
My eyes lift up to the tattoo artist as he holds the needle in his gloved hand. “So you just want the lips tattooed exactly as they are?”
Stace lies on the bed with his arm above his head. “Yes.” He thinks for a moment. “And the same colour as the lipstick.” He pauses for a second. “Actually, can you write the words Mrs. Mac underneath it.”
My mouth drops open. “You wouldn’t.”
He smiles broadly. “Just watch me.” He grabs my head and brings my face down to meet his. “I want to be marked as yours, too,” he murmurs against my lips. Our eyes lock and something changes. I have no idea what it is, but it feels good.
I fall back into the chair, half shocked, half elated. I spend the next hour watching Stace get my lips and the words Mrs. Mac permanently inked on his side.
Game over.
My life is complete.
* * *
Stace.
I wake as a wave of nausea hits me. “Shit,” I whisper with my eyes still closed. I feel sick.
What a night?
I close my eyes and smile to myself. Now that was a date. Rosh and I laughed, danced, and drank cocktails for hours until we came home and had mind-blowing sex.
She’s got me.
She’s got me by the balls.
I’ve never met anyone like her, and I’ve never felt like this before. She’s brave and beautiful, funny and sexy as fuck. I turn on my side to face her and my hand gently trails up over her naked body. My mind goes to yesterday when she told me that she lives every day as her last. It resonated with me, as if somehow I also know our time is limited. I can’t stand the thought of Vikinos getting to her. Her childhood was stolen because she spent her whole life on the run. The thought of him killing me and making her watch as punishment turns me inside out.
Because that’s how it will go.
They will catch us both and torture me to death in front of her, as he did to her mother. I get a vision of my brother being electrocuted to death and my blood runs cold. I don’t want her to have to go through that again… and I know I can’t go through it again.
To be honest, I don’t think he would kill her, but he will make her suffer as punishment for not loving him.
She has suffered enough.
Maybe he does want her dead? I can’t begin to imagine how his mind works.
I need a plan. I have to kill him first, but how? I had my plan and it was on the ship until she completely ruined it. He trusted me then, but I have no way of getting to him now.
She slowly opens her eyes and smiles shyly up at me. I lean in and kiss her gently. “Good morning, my Mrs. Mac.”
She smiles broadly and frowns sleepily as if remembering something. “Did you get a tattoo last night?
“I did.”
She screws up her face with her eyes still closed. “Oh God. You’re batshit crazy.”
“I am.” I bend and take her lips in mine. “We already established this.”
She smiles sleepily up at me and I feel my heart somersault. Even her smile affects me.
“Tell me something.” I pause, I’m not sure if now is the right time to bring this up. “If you dared to dream of a future, what would it be?”
She frowns. “That’s a bit deep for this time of the morning, isn’t it?”
“I’m just wondering.” I bend and kiss her lips. “Humor me.”
She rolls onto her back and thinks for a moment and I put my open hand onto her stomach as I wait for her answer. “I suppose I would just want all the normal things any girl wants.”
“Like what?”
She shrugs. “A husband who loved me, white picket fence in the country, two kids.” She smiles wistfully. “A dog.” Her voice trails off. “I always wanted a dog.”
I watch her. “You never had a dog?”
She shakes her head softly as if ashamed. “No.”
Sadness fills me. A simple thing like having a dog is her dream. We lay in silence for a moment and I stare up at the ceiling and pull her body across mine. I kiss her forehead. “Sounds nice,” I murmur. “Where would this white picket fence house be?”
“I don’t know, somewhere with rolling green acres,” she murmurs, as if far away.
I flicker my eyes over to her. “Could we build my mom a house on our land?” I smirk.
She pulls back to look at my face and smiles broadly. “Depends.”
“On what?”
“On whether she likes dogs.”
I laugh out loud and she leans up on her elbow above me. “Stop dreaming, Stace. That future isn’t our reality.”
My face falls. It’s tru
e it’s not. “It’s a nice dream, though, huh?” I ask sadly.
She kisses my chest. “Let’s just try to get through today, baby. Dreams only bring heartache.”
* * *
Rosh
It’s 10pm and Stace is in the shower. We’ve had a wonderful day in each other’s arms and have spent most of it in the rooftop pool. He went out this morning and bought us both a few new outfits and phones with prepaid data and credit. I couldn’t go. I was feeling too seedy from last night’s activities. Tonight we are going to try and find this guy who apparently knows where you sell things—the one who owns The Snake Pit. It sounds pretty dodgy if you ask me, but Stace assures me that it will be okay. He asked me to stay here and wait for him, but I am not letting him go alone. I would go crazy waiting here not knowing if he was safe.
I’m happy—God, I’m so happy—and I am petrified that my bubble is going to burst. I’m in my wig and my little pink dress.
I smile as I turn and look at my behind in this dress. Stace doesn’t particularly like it when I have the wig and this dress on. He thinks I look like a hooker and I’m pretty sure he is quite familiar with that look. My mind flashes to Chelsea and my skin prickles with jealousy. I pick up my phone and scroll through the Internet as a smile crosses my face. I can check emails now. Who knew something so trivial could be so exciting? I log into my email account and sip my wine as they load.
“Babe, can you get me the razor from the drawer, please?” Stace calls from the bathroom.
I look around. “What drawer?” I call.
“The stuff I bought today is in the top drawer of the desk. There is a razor in there.”
“Okay,” I call. I grab the razor and take it into him. I am rewarded with a wet kiss from my shower god. I return to my place on the bed as I wait for the emails, and finally, I get the ping that they loaded. The heading of the first one brings a frown to my face.
Downtown Storage Solutions
Subject – Activity
I frown and I click on the email.
Safety Security box was accessed today at 12.32pm.
I sit up in my seat. What? I check the date. No, that’s todays date. The email must have been sent yesterday after we were there? I scroll down the messages with a flutter in my chest. Don’t do it… no, don’t do it.