Texas Hellcat

by Shelley Stringer

  He turned and grinned at me. He retraced his steps, and opened a drawer of a large dresser across the room. Removing a white t-shirt, he tossed it at me. “Will that do?”

  “Yes, and some underwear, please. I have to have something on the bottom.”

  He rolled his eyes, and pulled the second drawer open. Grasping a pair of boxer briefs, he tossed those at me as well. I wriggled them on under the covers. Even though he was much bigger than me, the briefs hugged me and were surprisingly comfortable. I could see why guys liked them so much.

  “These are kind of neat. I might have to buy some,” I replied. He passed beside the bed to go into the other room.

  “That figures. I might have to buy the manufacturer, just so I can make them design a “split-crotch” version,” he growled. I giggled at his distaste for having me covered up. I really liked that he seemed to want me so much.

  When he didn’t come back into the bedroom right away, I snuggled down in the pillows. The bed smelled like him. Clean, like his soap and the cool, blue cologne I’d spotted in the bathroom. I shut my eyes, and for the first time, let my mind wander in no particular pattern, no thoughts but the here and now. It was a great feeling.

  A phone rang beside the bed. I heard him yell something from the other room, but I couldn’t hear what he said. As I sat up to answer the phone, the machine beside it kicked on and picked it up.

  “This is Liam Covington, I’m out, leave a message and I’ll get back to you.” The machine beeped twice, and then a voice sounding much like Liam’s came on.

  “Hey, it’s Ethan. You didn’t answer your cell earlier, and your voicemail is full. Someone’s reported back to Dad you’ve been playing with another one…some cunt you picked up at the office. He’s mad. You’d better dump this one quick, before it costs money again. I’m just giving you the head’s up, brother. Call tomorrow, before Dad comes up there himself. Adios.”

  The machine cut off.

  My heart was in my throat. Oh, shit…oh shit oh shit…

  I knew it. In my heart of hearts, I’d always known. How could I be so stupid? Another one, he’d said. Liam picked up another cunt. I inwardly cringed. How I despised the word! This was a pattern, and I’d fallen right in. I could feel the tears…hot tears welling up. I would not cry, not here. I had to leave, the panic was overwhelming.

  I heard him talking and then close the door in the other room. I rose and peered around the corner. He was standing on the balcony talking on his cell. As I scanned the room, I discovered my clothes, freshly laundered and folded at the end of the dining table. I grabbed them and my cell phone as I flew back into the bedroom. Two minutes later, I was fully clothed in my own clothes and half-hobbling, half-hopping across the room to let myself silently out the door.

  On the curb outside the hotel, I stopped and pulled my cell out of my pocket. I could never make it the fifteen or so blocks to our apartment with my ankle. Tana answered on the first ring. I fought to keep the emotion out of my voice, but it shook as I spoke.

  “Tana…I’m taking a cab home. Can you spot me a twenty until tomorrow, for cab fare?”

  “What’s wrong? What happened with Liam?”

  “Tana, please. Can you meet me outside at the curb in about ten minutes?” I looked up to find the bell boy, overhearing my conversation, was hailing a cab for me.

  “Sure, Kelly-cat. I’ll be waiting for you.”

  I turned my phone off. The cab wheeled into the drive in front of the hotel, and as the bell-boy held the door open for me, I looked up at him guiltily. I had no money to tip him.

  “Don’t worry, ma’am. My pleasure,” he smiled down at me, shutting the door behind me.

  The tears threatened again at the small kindness this stranger had shown me.

  “Where to, Miss?” The cabbie asked.

  “1st and Lamar,” I murmured as I wrapped my arms around myself. I was so angry. I let the anger wash over me, steeling me against the other emotion threatening to engulf me. How could I be so weak as to let someone like Liam Covington in? I’d fought so hard the past few years never to fall into that trap. I’d tried hard to push him away, and then the minute he really tempted me, I’d fallen right into his bed.

  I shut my eyes tightly, wanting the images to go away. I could still smell him on me. I could still feel him, his kisses on my now-swollen lips.

  “1st and Lamar,” the cabbie announced. I jumped, opening my teary eyes. Tana was already at my door with the money for the cab in hand. She handed it through to the cabbie as I hobbled quickly into the apartment.

  “Kelly, wait,” she called out. The door slammed behind me. Not looking at the surprised looks on my other two roommates’ faces, I hopped across the room to my iron stairs and climbed into the loft. Not bothering to change my clothes, I crawled into my bed, and pulled the covers up over me. I was humiliated.

  To Tana’s credit, she didn’t follow me. She knew when I was really upset I wouldn’t talk. With my heavy curtains drawn and covers over my head, I let go and cried myself to sleep…something I hadn’t done since my aunt died.

  Seven

  I woke suddenly. I didn’t know how long I’d been asleep, and I’d forgotten to set my alarm. With an angry jerk, I flung the covers back. My clock flashed 12:00.

  I’d been asleep for about three hours. The dull throbbing pain in my head sent me in search of something for pain. I stumbled across my room and pulled the top drawer of my dresser open to find my bottle of pain relievers. The green glow from my cell prompted me to check it…eight missed calls, and two text messages. I opened it to find the first message after three missed calls.

  Kel, why did you sneak out? Did I do something?

  Please, pick up your phone!

  Then the second text followed two more missed calls.

  Kelly, please! I heard my idiot brother’s

  Monologue on the answering machine.

  Don’t think for one minute

  it was about you. It’s not like that.

  Please, answer your phone!

  I fingered my phone for a second, wanting desperately to believe him. Anger won again, anger at myself for being so weak. I put the phone down on my dresser and sank back down on my bed.

  Voices filtered up to the loft. Sunni and Jen kept odd hours between school and work, and often stayed up late watching TV. I’d learned to tune it out. Suddenly, the voices rose, and Sunni sounded angry.

  “I could tell Kelly was upset when she came home earlier. I’m pretty sure she doesn’t want to see you.” Her clipped, Indian accent made her words sound angrier.

  “I know she’s upset. Where is she? She won’t answer my calls or texts. Where is her bedroom?”

  Shit. Liam was here in the apartment.

  “You can tell me, or I will tear the apartment apart looking for her.”

  “Calm down, dude. She’s up in the loft. If she doesn’t want to see you, you’ll leave immediately, or I’ll call the cops. Understood?” Tom’s voice rang out. I could hear Tana talking in the background.

  As I sat up in bed, Tom pulled the drapes back.

  “Hey, Kel…you awake?” he asked softly. I nodded in the darkness.

  “That Liam dude is here to see you. Do you want me to throw him out?” he asked, a little more force in his voice.

  “No, let him up,” I murmured. Tom shot me an apologetic look before he stepped aside and let him pass. Liam frowned, his eyes adjusting to the lack of light. I switched the lamp on in the floor beside my bed.

  “I’m just downstairs, if you need me,” Tom warned. He was protective of the girls in the apartment.

  I nodded as Liam knelt at the side of the bed. I couldn’t afford a real bed; Tana gave me her full-size mattress when she’d purchased a new one. I’d rummaged at a packing plant and found wooden pallets to serve as a platform for the mattress.

  “This is your room?” he asked disapprovingly.

  “Yes. It’s perfect for me,” I replied a little too defensiv
ely.

  He reached over and touched my cheek. I pulled away, and pulled the covers up to my chest.

  “Kelly, please. You left without saying anything. I know what you heard on my machine. I’m so sorry. They’re judging you based on my track record and it has nothing to do with you.”

  “So you do this a lot? Date beneath you and your family runs them off, until you can find another…what was the word? Oh! I remember -- cunt. That was the word, much more effective than whore!”

  I took a deep breath, holding the tears at bay. I refused to cry in front of him. I’d never felt more humiliated. I held my breath as he reached out to tuck a stray strand of hair behind my ear. My emotions waivered. He smelled so good. I’d learned to steel myself at a young age and not to expect physical affection when I was hurting. There hadn’t been anyone, except my sister and my Aunt, for a time. But it would be so easy to cave in. His words kept repeating in my head, “Let me love you, baby.”

  His eyes hardened as he drew his hand back, his anger at his brother’s crass wording apparent. “Those were his words, not mine. I don’t want to just take you out a few times and have some fun…”

  “Well, that’s good. Because I don’t need this. I don’t need you. I’ve been fine on my own for a very long time and tonight you reminded me why. I should have never dropped my guard with you.”

  “Just stop it. Do you really think you’re beneath me? Because that’s ridiculous.”

  “I’m from the wrong side of the tracks…the wrong side of everything!”

  “And I was born with a silver spoon in my mouth. So what? I had an easy ride through college, and skated by and partied, barely pulling C’s and D’s to graduate. I was given every opportunity and blew most of them until a couple of years ago. It’s not something to be proud of. You, on the other hand, were dealt a shit hand of cards, managed to raise yourself and your sister, put yourself through college somehow, have a promising future with a growing company, and still support your sister. You’re tough, Kel…and I am in awe of you! You’re unlike any girl I’ve ever known, and I want to get to know you better. I don’t want to let you go.”

  I’d been studying my hands, feeling more confused by the second. My head whipped up at his last comment. “Let me go? Covington, I was never yours!”

  He reached out, grabbing my shoulders as he pulled me into a fierce embrace. I pushed at his chest as his lips came down over mine. I knew if I didn’t put a stop to this, I’d give in to him completely. He felt so good. I could feel every muscle under his t-shirt as he flexed, trying to hold me to him.

  “No…please,” I pleaded, my frustration at a peak as my mind warred with my heart. “I can’t hurt again like this. Men like you leave. That’s what you’ll do. Men use you and leave!” My eyes welled, and with the tears came anger -- anger at my mother for falling into the same trap over and over, anger at my sister who was doing the same thing, anger at all the men who had used both of them and destroyed our lives.

  “Kelly, look at me,” he murmured, pulling my chin up so he could look into my eyes. “I’m not those men. I might have been, at one time, but not now. Not with you,” he said, trailing a thumb across my lips. “I don’t know where all this will lead, but I know I don’t want you to go. I would do anything before I would hurt you. If it had been any of the other girls I’ve dated who left my hotel room earlier, I wouldn’t have worried. I’ve never gone after anyone until you,” he whispered in my ear.

  “Damn you! I didn’t want this,” I whispered as his lips found mine again. But he’d won. He’d convinced me he would be different, and he would treat me like the men in fairy tales. I knew in the back of my mind there was no such thing. But tonight, I was willing to believe the lie. It felt good.

  * * *

  “Kelly-cat?” Liam whispered in the dark as he kissed my forehead.

  “Yeah. I guess you heard my sister on the phone. My full name is Kelly Catherine Sanger. Kelly Catherine…Kelly-cat. It was my aunt’s nickname for me, and it stuck. Tana heard my sister say it when she visited me at UT, and now all my roommates call me that.”

  “I kind of like it. It’s sexy.”

  “Yeah. I’m sure it’s what Aunt Deb intended when she gave it to a seven year-old.”

  He chuckled as he pulled me closer to him, snuggling in behind me. I felt totally draped in him with his left arm under my head, cradling my head against his shoulder. His left hand was curled around my waist, his thumb gently caressing my bare skin.

  After our fight, we’d made up quietly in our cocoon of antique draperies in the little loft. He’d asked me if he could stay with me, and the gesture had shocked me into submission. I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel about all of this in the morning, but for now I felt safe and relieved. I drifted to sleep, surrounded by the scent of him, the warmth of his body around mine.

  Eight

  My alarm went off at 6:30, and I rolled over to find Liam already gone. He’d left a note on his pillow. I smiled and picked it up

  .

  I ran to the hotel to shower and change –

  Meeting at 8:OO out of the office,

  otherwise I would come back

  to take you to work.

  I’ll be back for your big debut.

  Kick ass today, tough girl!

  Yours,

  L.

  What the hell did he mean, “my big debut?” I mulled his meaning over and over as I showered and then dried my hair. Maybe he was talking about everyone finding out about our relationship. Or maybe he was talking about the gala. I’d know soon enough.

  Usually, I kept the make-up to a minimum, but I suddenly needed the “Barbie treatment,” as Jen called it. I fixed my hair with a sixties kind of poof, tied it back in a ponytail, and then looped the ends in a lose bun. I even tackled the false half-eyelashes Tana had insisted I needed when we’d gone to a sorority formal at college. I managed to get them on the first try. Highlighter, lipstick…eye shadow. I stepped back and wondered if I’d gotten a little carried away. What the hell was I doing?

  You’ve fallen for this guy, that’s what, practical Kelly shot back. I’d donned one of the three smart outfits I owned. I’d gotten lucky at the resale store and found some great stuff for work. I chose a peach silk blouse with navy piping, and short navy blue pencil skirt that ended just above the knee, with a sexy slit in the back. A pair of low-heeled Mary-Jane pumps completed the look, keeping me from limping too badly. Tana had insisted they hurt her feet, and had given them to me. I had a suspicion she just wanted me to have them. Either way, I was grateful.

  * * *

  I was as nervous as a cat in a room full of pit bulls. King of the dicks, Dan Carter, called me at the last minute…eight fifty-five a.m to be exact, to attend the weekly update meeting in the conference room with the other VP’s. When I was hired, I was led to believe I would be involved in these little “master of the universe” sessions on keeping everyone up to date on our ongoing projects and prospects, but I’d never been invited until now. I had a sneaking suspicion my being included had to do with plans for the gala event this weekend. We’d been pitched this event last-minute by a friend of the CEO’s wife. She happened to be connected to a power house mortgage lender and some very high profile charities. It was our chance to shine and possibly pick up some very lucrative business connections. I’d been all over the assignment when Carter dumped it on me, and now it seemed he’d been caught unaware that he would need to be in the know.

  Carter breezed into the room and zeroed in on me. He was oblivious to Liam’s presence behind him as he eased into the chair beside me. Reaching over and squeezing my hand, he gushed at me. It took every ounce of strength I could muster not to jerk my hand away in disgust.

  “Kelly, you’ve got my back on this one, right? I never dreamed this crazy gala thing was on Stuart’s radar.”

  “Sure, Dan. Everything is under control.”

  “You’re here in case they need any trivial information.�
� He tapped his fingers impatiently on the conference table. I watched him with amused fascination as I sipped on my second cup of coffee. He’d come to the meeting with his hands in his pockets, with only his smile and smart-ass attitude to impress the other VP’s. I had my laptop, biography on Mrs. Trenton Leighton, Jr., information on Leighton Associates, and a list of charities she was involved with. My file on the gala and all the arrangements was about an inch thick.

  Liam cleared his throat, causing Carter to jump and turn. “Oh, Covington. Stuart bring you in on these meetings?” he asked, totally dismissing me from thought.

  “You could say that. Good morning, Kelly. I see you’re well prepared.”

  Carter turned to gape at me, apparently surprised Liam Covington seemed to be on a first name basis with me. I nodded to him as the other VP’s began to file in.

  “I trust everyone had a good night’s sleep, and we’re all ready to plunge through these updates.” Stuart Drake, CEO and Managing Partner of Austin Design and Management, Inc. called the informal meeting to order. “I see Miss Sanger is here. I understand you’re helping Carter with the gala. Thank you for joining us this morning.”

  I nodded in his direction and smiled. I noted out of the corner of my eye Liam was relaxed, kicked back in his chair with one foot crossed on the other knee, his elbow on the arm rest of the chair, rubbing his bottom lip with his long index finger. He watched me intently.

  My mind betrayed me as memories of what he’d done with those fingers…those lips…on me, there…everywhere. I blushed and looked away, determined to get my emotions under control. This wasn’t good. Why did he have to be here?

  Mr. Drake continued on. “Carter, bring us up to date on this gala event my wife helped to pitch our way.”

  Dan Carter cleared his throat. “Stuart asked me to bring Kelly along. She has been ironing out some of the minor details for us, and can give us an overview,” he stated.