Break Me (Shattered)

by Jo-Anna Walker

  After my encounter with him, I didn’t see him in the coffee shop again for the rest of the week.

  I spent that time searching for a job but had no such luck.

  The baristas would always giggle and whisper when I came in, as if they knew something that I didn’t. Did they know about my alley adventure? Oh God. I didn’t see any cameras, but what if a stranger walked by and saw us?

  A week and a half later, I walked into the coffee shop and expected to see him there sitting at his usual table. When I didn’t see him, a flutter of disappointment settled in my belly.

  Every time I thought of Sebastian, my body inflamed. He was like a drug, and I needed my fix. I was addicted to him already. He was dark and brooding and unable to control myself, I was drawn to him.

  I was sitting at my usual spot in the little coffee shop, reading, when a dark shadow covered my page.

  A masculine scent filled my nostrils, and before looking up, I knew exactly who it was. My body hummed, as if it recognized him too.

  The same intoxicating smell of fresh soap and man forced its way into my nose much like the owner had forced his way into my life.

  I took a deep breath and lifted my eyes. Seeing him sit across from me set my body on overdrive with the anticipation of being touched by him again.

  Something about this man made me want him. I craved him, even though instinctively I knew he was dangerous.

  But since the first time I saw him and since our encounter in the alley, I couldn’t get him out of my head. The feel of his lips on mine, his hard body pressed up against me, pushing me into the wall. I wanted him. I needed him, and that sent a nervous flutter racing through my stomach. No man had ever had this much impact on me in just two encounters.

  My heart thudded against my rib cage, and my cheeks grew hot under his intense gaze.

  “Hello, little one.” His deep, smooth voice washed over my skin like melted chocolate, making my mouth water.

  Images of our moment in the alley and what he had said to me popped into my head. I swallowed hard. “Hello, Sebastian.”

  He was wearing the same black leather jacket over a white cotton shirt this time, and his tattoos peeked out from the collar around his thick neck. What I wouldn’t give to see how far down under his shirt those tattoos went.

  “So, how have you been?” he asked casually.

  “Hmm?”

  Did he ask me a question?

  A grin spread on his face. “I asked, how have you been?”

  “Oh…” My skin heated. “I’ve been…um…good.”

  A smug smile formed on his distractingly handsome face. “Something on your mind, little one?”

  I coughed. I’d say. My gaze kept flicking back to his lips. Lips that had kissed me. I so had it bad for him. “You could say that. So how have you been?”

  “I’ve been good too. Very, very good.” Lust danced in his gaze as he looked at my lips like he was also remembering our very heated kiss in the alley.

  My skin heated. Oh God. What was it about him that had me practically begging at his feet?

  “Now why are you distracted, little one?” He was teasing me.

  If he actually thought I was going to come out and say it, he had another thing coming. I cleared my throat again. “No reason.”

  “I think you’re lying, but that’s fine. I’m sure I’ll find out eventually.” He casually leaned back in the chair, all the while not taking his gaze from mine.

  My cheeks were red hot under his intense scrutiny. Taking a sip of my coffee, I ignored him. Or tried to at least.

  “I love making you blush.” A hint of amusement coated his voice. He sure was confident in his sexual abilities. He probably had reason to be. Tori, do not think about that right now.

  I rolled my eyes. “I am not blushing.”

  His eyes darkened. “Really?”

  My throat went dry, and I nodded. “I do not blush.”

  Sebastian laughed. “Well, we’ll just have to change that.”

  I gasped when I felt a tug on my chair. He pulled me as close to the table as possible.

  I was stuck. With the chair having arms on it and it being pulled tight to the edge, I couldn’t back up or move it at all. I looked down on either side of me and saw his feet holding the chair legs.

  Moving forward, he pointed at the book in my hands. “Still reading porn I see.”

  I noticed the tattoos covered his hands as well. No wedding ring marked his left hand, and I breathed a sigh of relief. For some reason the thought of him being single made me giddy.

  I raised an eyebrow. “Seriously? Is this how you get a girl’s attention?”

  “This…” His eyes blazed and he licked his lips. “And other ways.”

  My heart beat loudly against my chest, and tingles of anticipation of being kissed by him again coursed through my body. “Yeah, well, it helps pass the time while I look for a job.”

  “I can think of better ways to pass the time.” His voice lowered suggestively.

  I cleared my throat and shook that thought out of my head. “I bet you could, but since we’re in a public place, that might not be a good idea.”

  He laughed. “You have a point. As much as I would love to be caught naked with you…”

  The way he said naked sent shivers up my spine. Being strong, I tugged on my chair. “Let me go.”

  “I’ll let you go soon.” Then he took the book from me, pausing to draw tiny, tingly, circles on the back of my hand with his thumb. A moment later, he placed the book down on the table. “Why are you reading this? It’s probably boring as hell.”

  “Yeah, well, I’m sure it’s better than anything you could come up with.”

  Filter, Tori, filter.

  He raised an eyebrow, and an evil glint flashed through his eyes.

  Oh, shit.

  My eyes widened as he reached across and grabbed my wrist. His rough, calloused fingers gently smoothed over my pulse point. He brought my hand up to his mouth, and I watched as he kissed each one of my fingers while massaging my palm with his thumbs.

  Each movement sent jolts of electricity straight to my groin; all the while he kept his eyes on me.

  My mouth parted and my breathing picked up. I stared as he kissed his way down my fingers to the middle of my palm. When he reached the spot above my wrist, he opened his mouth, and I gasped when he lightly bit it, sending liquid pooling in my panties.

  Oh God.

  I didn’t want him to stop. “Oh…my…” I said breathily.

  A mischievous look flicked in his eyes as he kissed my wrist and gently placed it back on the table. He released my chair, stood up, and walked around behind me. His broad chest pressed into my back as he leaned down and placed his hands on either side of me.

  I closed my eyes as the heat from his body seeped into mine. The light scent of soap and man filled my nostrils. It was intoxicating. Hot breath grazed my ear and my neck, sending shivers down my spine.

  “You are definitely blushing now,” he whispered, placing a kiss on my neck.

  “Sebastian.” My heart thumped against my chest, and I bit my bottom lip.

  “What, little one?”

  “I…I…” I stammered, words not forming properly on my tongue.

  He chuckled. “Is there something you want?”

  Oh God.

  He was going to make me say it, wasn’t he? “Please…I…”

  “Yes?”

  Fuck it.

  I leaned down and reached into my bag, pulling out a piece of paper and a pen. I quickly wrote down my address and phone number.

  “Little one…”

  I frowned as I heard the question in his voice asking me if I was sure. I was. “Take it. Before I change my mind,” I whispered.

  Sebastian grabbed the paper out of my hand. “I’ll be seeing you soon, little one.” His voice was husky. He placed another kiss on my neck that sent tremors of heat through my body.

  I turned my head, watching him w
alk out of the coffee shop. My blood pounded hard against in my ears at his unexpected promise. Taking a couple of deep breaths, I leaned back in my chair. What the hell did I just do?

  Chapter 3

  I gave a complete and total stranger my address and phone number. Not being in the habit of sleeping with random men, I was nervous about the possibility of him showing up at my place unannounced.

  My body reacted more quickly than my brain did, so while I was writing down my address and phone number, I ignored that little voice in my head that told me to stay away from him. Sebastian definitely was a man who knew what he wanted and when he wanted it, and I think even if I tried to stay away from him, that would be near impossible.

  No man had ever made my loins quiver just by kissing the palm of my hand. If he could do that just by a kiss, who knew what else he could do?

  I looked up and saw one of the baristas headed towards me. She sat in the seat across from me. Tight brown curls framed her oval face, and she had the biggest bright green eyes I had ever seen.

  “Girl, please tell me that you’re sleeping with that man.”

  “Uh…”

  “Because what I just saw was totally fucking hot.” She fanned herself.

  I leaned forward, placing an elbow on the table. “I only just met him…”

  Her eyes widened. “Really? Well I hope it works out for you.”

  I just gave him my address and phone number. It had better work out. Feeling ashamed of myself, I smiled tightly. “Thank you.”

  She held her hand out in front of me. “My name’s Keisha Lee. I work here pretty much every day, and if you sleep with him, I want details.”

  I laughed and shook her hand.

  Keisha had a fiery, bubbly spirit about her, and when she smiled, it reached her eyes, lighting up her whole face. I liked her.

  “I’ve seen you here a lot. We should hang out some time.”

  I also appreciated her forwardness. “Sure, that sounds fun.”

  “Awesome, and you are…”

  “Oh, sorry. Little distracted. I’m Tori McLeod.”

  “It’s understandable. Distracted by Mr. Bodacious. He’s fucking gorgeous.” She waggled her eyebrows.

  I giggled. “Yeah, he is.” My skin warmed just thinking about him.

  “Did you get his name?”

  “Sebastian Chelios.”

  She gaped. “Wow, even his name is hot.”

  I laughed. “Yeah, it is.”

  “Well, it’s nice to meet you, Tori.” Her smile seemed to turn brighter at that thought.

  We chatted for the rest of the night until the coffee shop closed, making plans for the next day to go shopping.

  ***

  Over the next couple of weeks, Keisha and I hung out regularly, becoming friends. She told me about her brother owning a nightclub, so we decided to make an appearance. I hadn’t heard from Sebastian, and even though I never expected him to call me or show up to my place, a part of me was disappointed. So Keisha and I were going to go out and have a good time. Apparently I needed a night out anyway, according to her.

  Showing up at the coffee shop with ten minutes to spare, I sat in my regular seat.

  I settled on casual and comfortable, wearing dark blue skinny jeans and a white tank top. I threw my long, straight black hair up in a ponytail and wore little make up.

  “Are you ready?” Keisha walked up to the table, eyes bright and full of life. I envied her bubbly personality.

  “Yes, I am.” I smiled and stood.

  “You’re not wearing that, are you?”

  I frowned and looked down at myself. “What’s wrong with what I’m wearing?”

  She rolled her eyes and grabbed my hand. “Come on.”

  We left the coffee shop and walked to the end of the street where Keisha hailed a cab. “I only live about two blocks, but I don’t want to wear out my dancing feet.” She winked at me and opened the door to the cab when it pulled up. She slid over, and I followed in behind her.

  Keisha gave the cab driver her address, and his eyebrow rose. “What? I don’t want to wear myself out before the night begins if you must know.”

  I laughed and she glared at me.

  A moment later a giggle escaped her lips, and we were both in hysterics by the time we reached her apartment building.

  Growing up, I never had a friend quite like Keisha. She was a spitball of fire, and in the short time that I’d known her, I could already see us becoming lifelong friends.

  She was a little bit shorter than me, but her big personality made up for it.

  When we reached her apartment and after paying the cabbie, Keisha practically dove out of the vehicle.

  Shaking my head, I smiled and followed her to the big brick building in front of us.

  It was a three-story walk-up that was between a Chinese restaurant and a mini grocery store.

  As we approached Keisha’s apartment, I heard some loud noises coming from behind a door down the hall. I laughed once I realized what was causing them.

  She laughed along with me. “Sounds like they’re having a good time.”

  “Yeah, no doubt.” A wave of jealousy flowed through me, settling in the pit of my stomach.

  Oh, what I wouldn’t give for a night like that.

  Hearing the woman scream and moan from the other apartment instantly made an image of Sebastian pop into my head.

  I sighed. I so had it bad for him.

  “You’re thinking about him, aren’t you?”

  “What? Are you psychic or something?”

  Keisha giggled. “No, I just know how to read people, and its obvious ’cause you’re blushing.”

  I huffed. “I swear, that man is the only fucking one to ever make me blush, and it’s very annoying.”

  “Oh Tor, you really need to get him out of your system.”

  I turned back toward Keisha. “Yeah, I do.”

  She laughed again and grabbed my hand, yanking me from my spot at the door. As she dragged me to her bedroom, I noticed her cozy living room that was vibrant in colors, just like its owner. It was my first time in her apartment since meeting her a couple of weeks ago but I could see that her style was very much like her personality.

  “Keisha, I think I did something stupid.” I never told her about giving Sebastian my address and phone number, and it was eating me up inside.

  “Oh?”

  “I gave him my address and phone number.” I said quickly.

  Her eyes widened. “You did what? I know I haven’t known you for long but I feel I should say this anyway. Are you fucking crazy!”

  My face heated. “Trust me; I was thinking the same thing.”

  “Girl…” She shook her head.

  I followed Keisha as we walked down a narrow hall lined with picture frames that were empty. I was about to ask why they were still empty when she caught me looking at them.

  “I haven’t found anyone deserving enough to be in my frames except for my brother,” she said, answering my question for me. She pointed to a handsome man that was with her in one of the smaller frames.

  “I like them.”

  “I liked them too, so I bought them all.” She smiled at me. “Maybe you’ll be in one of them someday.”

  I smiled back. “I think I would like that.”

  “Now back to the Sebastian thing… I can’t really judge about you giving out your phone number and address to a guy you just met ‘cause girlfriend, trust me, I probably would have done the exact same thing.” She laughed and pulled me into her bedroom.

  “Well that makes me feel somewhat…” My eyes went wide. There were clothes everywhere. On her bed, her desk, her dresser…it was like a clothing store threw up in her room.

  “Um, Keisha…”

  She looked back at me and noticed my reaction. “Don’t mind the mess. I’m a bit of a slob.”

  Yeah, no kidding.

  Keisha released my hand and walked to her closet. “Ok, now what can we get you to
wear to make all the guys’ eyes pop out of their heads?”

  I crossed my arms under my chest and raised an eyebrow.

  She turned back to me and sighed. “Fine, what can you wear to make Sebastian’s eyes pop out of his head?”

  “I don’t think I have any issues in that department,” I mumbled.

  She laughed. “Yeah, probably not.” She gave me a once-over. “Hmm…” Tapping her chin, she crossed her other arm under her chest. “Well, you are hot and you have a smoking body. Okay, will you change just one thing for me then?”

  “Sure.” I frowned.

  “What size are your feet?” She looked down at my feet and scowled at my black flats.

  “Eight,” I said, following her gaze.

  She clapped her hands together. “Perfect!” She turned around and started digging through the bottom of her closet. She threw stuff out behind her, and I actually had to dodge a couple of shoe boxes and clothing items so I wouldn’t get hit in the head.

  “I know they’re here somewhere,” she mumbled.

  A few moments later, she rose and handed me a pair of black high heels that looked to be about four inches high.

  She expects me to walk in these?

  I looked down at the shoes in her hand. “Um…I don’t think I could walk or even dance in these shoes.”

  She shoved them at me. “Try them on. You never know. There’s a floor-length mirror on the back of the door.”

  Grabbing the shoes out of her hand, I walked to her door and closed it. I put the shoes on. They were hot. They made my legs look a mile long. I took a couple of steps to the left and then to the right, surprised at how easy they were to walk in.

  “Um…Keisha?”

  “Oh my gosh. You look fucking gorgeous, Tori! Those shoes are perfect.”

  Both of us were looking in the mirror at my feet.

  “Thank you. I love them. I just hope I can dance in them.”

  Keisha shrugged her shoulders. “Just take them off if you have to. That’s what I do, but I’m sure you’ll be fine. Sebastian could always hold you up anyway if your feet get tired.”

  I rolled my eyes and laughed. “You say that like he’s going to be at the club tonight.”

  “Well…” She turned and grabbed a dress from her closet and walked to the bathroom, shutting the door behind her.