Controlling Circumstances

by Jean Kelso

  It’s my turn to laugh a little. I tip my head up a bit to see Gabe’s face and ask, “What were you like as a kid?”

  “Well, to be honest, I had issues. I didn’t have the lovey-dovey parents that most think. I was kind of wild and crazy at times and didn’t have control of anything going on. It wasn’t until I met Jack that things started to turn around for me. Oh, and that weekend I spent in jail helped a little, too.” Gabe grimaces.

  I sit up and look at him. I’m in shock. “Jail?” I squeak.

  He just laughs. “Yeah, but it wasn’t just me. Jack was there, too.” Gabe shakes his head at the memory and smiles. “Jack thought it’d be fun while we were at his grandparent’s cottage to go out in his new car with a baseball bat and play ‘timber.’” Gabe sits back and folds his arms across his chest with a smirk on his face. He looks at me. “Did you know that it is illegal to smash peoples’ mail boxes with a baseball bat as you drive by them?”

  I can’t contain the smirk that rises to my mouth. A laugh bubbles out. This man’s taking my heart and making it his. It amazes me to hear that story and to see him now as the man he’s become. The lessons he must’ve learned. I shake my head at him. “You were crazy.”

  Gabe fakes being hurt. “Hey, what were two sixteen year old boys to do on a weekend when bored? Especially being out in the country?” Then Gabe laughs and pulls me in for a hug.

  We talk about our childhoods for what seems like hours. Never once do we lose contact with each other, always touching in some way. There’s a knock on the door and my body tenses. Gabe must feel it.

  “It’s okay, babe. It’s probably just Mel or Jack.” Gabe gets up and goes to answer the door.

  I don’t even have time to turn when I hear footsteps run towards me. Mel’s on me in seconds. “Are you okay? What happened? I wanted to leave work as soon as I got your message, but there was no one to cover. Shit, Belle. Why now?” Mel takes a breath and slumps on the couch.

  I grab Mel’s hands in mine and take a deep slow breath. “I’m okay, Mel. I think Mike’s been playing Knicky Knicky on my door, and he called me.”

  I see Mel bite her lip, and I know she’s freaked out. My strong friend is scared. She knows everything that happened to me, all the therapy I went through, and was strong through it all for me. But now, with eight years of freedom from that monster, I know she feels exactly like I do.

  Scared to death.

  I know there were charges on the other guys in the room for what they did to me as well, but they didn’t stand trial for that, so I don’t know the whole outcome to it. I just wanted it to all go away at the time. I assume since Mike went away that his friends did, too.

  I’m in the middle of explaining to Mel about the phone call when another knock sounds on the door. My body tenses again. Fuck, will that ever stop? Mel and I both look to see who will walk through the door this time.

  Gabe walks into the living room with a tall, lean man. He has shaggy brown hair and startling bright brown eyes. He wears a pair of dark wash jeans that hugged his body perfectly and a black t-shirt that shows off a set of tattoos on each of his arms. The man’s definitely hot.

  I’m not sure if I’m drooling, but my mouth’s open. I hear a throat clear and I close my mouth, swallow deep and look to Mel who has an identical reaction to mine.

  “Belle. Mel. This is Jack.” I hear a chuckle come from both of the men.

  I smile politely at Jack. “Hello, Jack. I’ve heard many things about you.” I look at Gabe and smirk.

  Gabe narrows his eyes at me and his lips are in a tight line—a look of warning about something…what I’m not sure, though.

  I elbow Mel who seems to still be in a daze of some sort. “Hi,” she squeaks out and blushes.

  OMG. My friend blushed. She never does that. She must be really smitten by this man.

  “Ladies,” Jack speaks in a sexy, husky voice that I’m sure could melt any woman’s panties.

  The men walk towards the kitchen. Gabe speaks as he passes. “I’m going to give Jack the low down of the situation while you girls chat. We’ll be back.” Gabe smirks and then both men are gone.

  When I look toward Mel, I see her still looking in the men’s direction. I laugh. “Cat got your tongue, Mel?”

  She immediately looks back at me with a huge grin. “He’s fucking hot.”

  I laugh harder. That’s my girl. Mel’s back. “Yes, he sure is one fine specimen.”

  We can hear the men in the next room, but we can’t make out words. Knowing that both the men are here to help out makes me feel even safer than I already did. I take a deep breath and relax.

  “So anyways…” I continue to explain everything that has happened so far. Mel takes it all in. Beneath the fear she exhibits, the anger’s there. I can see it. Mel doesn’t like people hurting me and is always protecting me, too.

  Mel leans in and pulls me in for a hug. I can hear her sniffle as she holds me, but I say nothing about it. I need to at least try to act strong, even though that’s the last thing I actually am.

  “Gabe will protect you.” Mel mumbles through her tears. “And so will I! I’ll do whatever it takes, Belle. You know I will.” She pulls back, wipes her tears and looks at me. Such a brave woman she is.

  I feel a little choked-up by her emotions and have to fight my own tears. “I know.” I lick my lips and lean my head back on the back of the couch.

  We sit in silence for a few moments, but they feel like hours. I’m not sure if I fall asleep or if I am just so deep in thought that I don’t hear the men return to the room.

  “You ladies want some takeout?” Jack’s husky voice makes Mel open her eyes. She looks like she had fallen asleep.

  I lift my head from the couch, turn my body and smile at Jack. I hear Mel mumble something as she stares at him openly. “That sounds great. I’m famished.”

  Mel clears her throat. “Yes, please,” she manages to whisper.

  My match-making thoughts begin to spin. I’ve never seen Mel react this way before with a man. I love it. I want to see her happy. All the men she has tried to be with have treated her like crap, and none of them were as hot as Jack.

  Being the sweet, loving woman she is, I think Mel deserves to have a man treat her like a fucking princess. If I’m getting my fairy tale then Mel needs one, too.

  I look back to Jack just as Gabe steps in front of me. He leans down and kisses my forehead. I blush, of course. I’m not used to all the public displays of affection, and with Jack being new to the fold, I can’t help control my heated skin.

  “Chinese or pizza, babe?” Gabe asks while he walks toward the kitchen. I, of course, tip my head to watch his behind as he walks. Damn. All the thoughts of match making sure put my mind in the gutter. I shake my head and smile to myself.

  “Either one. I’m easy,” I call out without even thinking about the words I am saying.

  I hear both men chuckle. I scrunch my eyebrows and bite my lip in thought. It dawns on me. “Shit, Gabe. You know what I mean.” I laugh and blush again. Then I tuck my head down to my chest and try to hide my embarrassment from Mel and Jack. Mel is used to my little quirky slips. I hear her laugh beside me.

  “Yeah, Belle. I know, babe. Just not cheap, right?” Gabe laughs as he walks back into the room.

  Ugh. Kill me now. He did not just use the rest of the phrase in front of his friend. Talk about total embarrassment. I pick up a pillow from the couch and cover my face with it. I can feel the couch cushions shake as Mel laughs. She has heard the expression on many occasions—it’s an actual running joke between us at work when it comes to switching shifts. I just never expected Gabe to use it against me. I shouldn’t have told him about it. What an evil, but loving, man.

  CHAPTER 14

  Belle

  GABE ORDERS CHINESE FOR DINNER and tells us it’ll be delivered in about half an hour. Gabe and Jack both get comfortable on the available chairs in the room and we wait.

  Minutes pass and Jack stands
. “I should get my bag from the truck. Best to start sooner than later,” Jack says as he walks towards the foyer.

  “Need a hand, man?” Gabe asks him while raising his eyebrows.

  “Sure.” Jack nods as he leaves the room.

  Gabe gets up to follow him. “Be back up in a few minutes, ladies.”

  As soon as Gabe leaves the apartment I hear my cell ring. I thought Gabe had my phone. Strange. The sound comes from the kitchen. I set the pillow on the couch beside me and get up. I get into the kitchen and find my cell phone on the counter. It rings again. I look down at the display. It says ‘unknown number’ and that creepy chill races up my spine.

  “Belle? Who is it?” Mel yells from the living room.

  I slowly pick up the phone. I know I shouldn’t, but I seem to be a glutton for punishment. I push all my fear aside and answer. “Hello?” I whisper loudly.

  “Izzy’s going to die.” Next I hear a click and then nothing. He hung up. Tears well up in my eyes and my hands begin to shake. Hearing that old nickname has jolted fear right through me. I set the phone down on the counter and back up to the wall where I sink to the floor.

  “Belle?” Mel yells again. I vaguely hear footsteps come into the room. “Belle?” Mel’s voice muffles its way through the haze that’s going on in my mind.

  I stare straight ahead to the counter I just left my cell phone on. My hands still shake and goose bumps rise on my skin. My happy time from moments ago with Gabe, Mel and—I hope a new friend—Jack is gone. My past has come back to haunt me. The reality of the situation stares me in the face, and I don’t think I can handle it. Everything crashes down so fast. Not once since I got that letter did I expect this kind of call, this kind of threat. I wish I could go back in time and never had met that bastard.

  In the distance I hear Mel shouting out, “Gabe. Jack. Get your asses in here, now!” Then a herd of feet come running into the room. Voices call out to me, but I don’t snap out of it. I’m in a fog, a deep daze of sorts. I am not sure I want to leave this space. It isn’t real, is it?

  I can feel my body as it lifts from the floor. I float, or at least it feels like it. By the smell of it, Gabe has me in his arms and carries me somewhere. Mumbles of voices continue. I hear snippets of the conversation, but not really. The fog is so thick that my gaze is blank. I don’t know if I even blink.

  I believe it’s Mel’s voice that speaks. “Phone ringing…floor-shaking…” Next thing I know, I’m set down, but not let go. Gabe still has ahold of me. Through the haze I can smell him. His smell is the only thing that attaches me to reality right now. Even though I don’t want to be in the here and now, I won’t let go. I won’t give up. I haven’t fought this long to be coward of sorts.

  I feel the warmth of Gabe’s body against mine and hear his heartbeat in his chest. I realize I’m curled into him. We must be on the couch because I can hear Mel and Jack as they talk with Gabe. The rumble of his voice soothes me to an extent. I know he’s looking for answers and I just wish I was the one giving them. Soon I will be, but first I need to shake the fog that bogs me down.

  “Has she ever reacted like this before?” Gabe’s voice is muffled, but I can hear it clear enough as I sit dazed, listening.

  From a distance I can hear Mel. She’s crying, but she answers. “This is how she was for days after the rape. All sense of reality was gone. It took a good week for her to shake it.” Mel sniffles.

  Gabe’s grip on me gets tighter and then eases. I feel a warm touch to my head. He must’ve kissed me there.

  It’s hard to explain, the fog. It’s not like the last time. I can sense and feel everything around me, but for some reason my body and mind don’t allow me to respond. I suppose you can say it’s shock, but not really. It’s like I’m here and I want to answer Gabe when he speaks, but my mind just focuses on that phone call and the possible outcome. Maybe a wire is crossed or something.

  Hands rub my back. It comforts and relaxes me. My body fights with my mind—fighting a battle to not give in, to not let Mike win. There’s no way I will let that fucker win again. He took so much of me with him already. I can’t let it happen again. I’m screaming inside, but no words come out. My lips are dry and unmoving. I stop listening to the conversation in the room. I can imagine they are looking for answers…answers only I can give.

  I try to focus on the one sentence, the threat that caused this whole little meltdown. I force myself to concentrate. Gabe needs answers and I need to shake this and give him what he needs.

  I feel tears begin to stream down my cheeks. Voices begin to become clearer. The words I wanted out finally slip through. “He’s going to kill me.” The words are shaky and my tone’s low, but the words are out.

  Suddenly, I shift in my seat to face Gabe. He stares at me intently. “What did you say?” he growls.

  I blink a few times and wipe the tears from my face. Reality rushes back full force. I look at Gabe, lick my lips and swallow. “He said he was going to kill me.”

  Gabe pulls me into a tight hug and rests my head on his chest. “Like hell he will,” Gabe grunts out. “Jack, get your computer running and let’s get this shit started. No one, and I mean no one, is going to hurt my woman!” Gabe shifts on the couch. “You hear me, Belle? No one!”

  Everything goes crazy at this point. Jack grabs his bags and pulls two laptops from them. He sets them on the table in the dinette space behind the couch. Mel gets up and rushes to the kitchen to grab my phone and hands it off to Jack. Gabe kisses my forehead and leaves me on the couch to watch the whirlwind occur before me. Cables are strung across the room from laptop to outlet. My cell phone gets plugged into an adaptor of some sort. I’m so not tech savvy, so I have no idea of what’s going on. I just sit and watch. I wait and listen. Maybe they’ll need me, maybe not.

  Gabe brings me a glass of water and tucks a piece of loose hair behind my ear. He smiles a quick smile and crouches down in front of me. “Did he say anything else?” Gabe looks at me intently, expecting me to say more, but nothing else was said, so I just shake my head.

  Gabe reaches out and gently takes my chin in his hand. He narrows his eyes. With tight, grim lips, he asks, “Are you sure? I need to know, Belle.”

  I blink away a lonely tear and shake my head again. “No. That was all.”

  Gabe straightens and walks back toward Jack who types away furiously on a laptop now. “Got anything, man?” he asks Jack with a low voice.

  Jack looks up quickly with a grim expression on his face. “Nah, man. He’s using a throwaway, so I can’t get a return number.” Jack looks back down to his computer. “I’m trying to ping the phone to see what towers he’s hitting to see if he is in the area or not.”

  I watch Mel sit in a chair at the table with a mug in her hand. I’m not sure when she left the room to get a coffee, but I know with the look in her eyes that she means business. I can’t wait to see the shit she’ll put Jack through.

  “So, Jack…” Mel makes the k louder than the rest of the name. Her eyebrows raise as she looks at him hunched over the computer, working away.

  I snicker to myself. I knew it was coming. Mel’s my best friend, but she can be a pain sometimes, especially when it comes to her friends. I pick up my water as I sit and watch it all play out.

  Jack grunts, but never looks up. That man’s going to push my girl and I’m going to get a kick out of it. It’s nice to have something to distract me—at least for a moment or two.

  Mel taps her nails on the table loudly and I smile to myself. “What’s all this crap you have on the table here?” Mel asks as she takes a sip of her drink and sets it down. Then she leans forward. “I mean, what the hell will it do to help?”

  Jack slowly looks up at her, a scowl on his face. “Crap? Are you serious right now?” He scoffs. “This crap,” he chokes out his words, “is some of the most expensive, high-tech computer and software technology that the federal government uses to track down criminals.” Jack sneers at Mel and looks d
own to his computer.

  I can see the twinkle in Mel’s eyes from where I sit. She’s messing with him. Her shyness is gone and my brave friend is back and ready to play. I say bring it on, girlfriend.

  The doorbell rings, which must be dinner, and Gabe heads down to get it. I’m not overly hungry now, but I know I can’t become that sheltered woman I once was. I need to be strong. I head to the kitchen and hear someone follow. I look behind to see Gabe with a paper bag in his hand that smells absolutely divine. In the kitchen I begin to search cupboards for dinnerware to use when suddenly Gabe’s hands wrap around my waist. I feel his hot breath on my neck. I close my eyes and take in his warmth. I love the feeling of Gabe against me. His breath on my neck teases me—I want his lips there. Anything to distract me from the situation I’m in, the reality of my hell that lies before me. I tip my head a bit and feel Gabe’s warm, wet lips press lightly just below my ear. A soft moan escapes me. Gabe squeezes me tightly and whispers in my ear. “Are you alright, babe?”

  “Hmm-mmm,” I manage to get out.

  Gabe’s hand moves up my stomach, over my chest and to my neck. He turns my head perfectly so our lips can meet. Gabe’s tongue slides across my bottom lip, and I moan again. This is the perfect distraction right now. My lips part for him and his tongue sinks in to meet mine. Our tongues and lips tease and tango for a few short moments before he pulls back, breathing heavily. I can feel his erection against my ass before he steps back.

  “As much as I’d love to devour every part of your body right now, Belle, you need to eat and I need to help Jack,” Gabe breathes out while he opens the bag of food on the counter.

  How men can be so easily deterred, I don’t know, but I’m feeling hot and heavy. I want to smack the man. I blow out a breath and glare at him. “Fine,” I grunt.

  After filling a plate with some chicken balls, rice and an egg roll, I head back out to the living room. Mel still stares intently at Jack as his fingers work furiously on the keyboard.