by Seton, Cora
*
Charlene
Each step inside my house felt like wading through water. I kept pushing my way through, but my limbs were sluggish and unresponsive. Why was it so hard walking away from Jesse? I would have loved to date him, but involving him in the mess that my life was becoming was just too hard. Plus, he was hero material, and he’d have wanted to save me. There was no saving me, and I couldn’t risk Nick Smith having the ability to lord yet another person over my head.
Dad appeared from his office, wearing his suit and carrying his keys. “All done, Charlie?”
I nodded. “Yeah. Not too much to talk about. It’s just a porch.”
“Good. Could you run Damien to Matt’s house? He’s staying the night.”
“Yeah, Dad.”
He leaned over and kissed my cheek. “Thanks. I’ll see you later.”
With a gentle whoosh, my dad was gone. Dad worked a lot at the city these days, even on weekends. But no one could deny that he got things done. It wasn’t that different from when he was the chief of police. Long hours, little reward, but he loved the work so much.
“Damien!” I shouted through the house and grabbed my keys from the kitchen counter where I’d left them. “If you want to go to your friend’s house, you have five minutes to be ready!”
“I’m coming!” he yelled back.
True to his word, he was down in four minutes, carrying his backpack. He kept smiling at me as we got in the car and drove off until I finally couldn’t stand it anymore. “What’s on your mind, shrimp bait?”
“You got a boyfriend.”
“I did not.”
“You were sucking face with him on the porch.”
Crap. “You saw that?”
“Yup. And you’re blushing now.”
I smoothed my palm over my hot cheek. Yeah, I was blushing. “He’s not my boyfriend, Damien. And you shouldn’t spy on people.”
“You’ve never had a boyfriend before. It’s probably time. Then maybe you wouldn’t be all cranky and stuff.”
Out of the mouths of almost-teens. I glared out the corner of my eye at him. “Why don’t you keep your nose out of my love life, and I’ll not tell Dad that you’re the one who stomped all over his vegetables last week.”
“You wouldn’t dare!”
I faced the road, and purposely didn’t look at him. “Oh, wouldn’t I, my dear little brother?”
“Damn, you’re mean.”
“Watch your mouth, shrimp bait.” I told him. Eleven year olds had no business talking like that. “You kiss your mother with that mouth.”
“Please, you say worse and you kiss Mom, too.”
“Yes, but I’m an adult.”
“You’re not an adult.”
“Why do you say that?”
“You’re just adult age.”
I laughed. I couldn’t help it. He made sense, and it was a logical conclusion for someone much older to draw. The fact that he could do it at eleven was kind of awesome, if not a little insulting for me.
“You’re all right, shrimp bait.”
“You’re not going to be allowed to call me that when I’m bigger than you.” At the current rate of growth, he’d be taller than me in a matter of months.
“Oh, no?” I smiled. “I think I might anyway. I think you’ll always be shrimp bait to me.”
Damien laughed. We talked about inane things the rest of the way, bantering back and forth the way we always did. We might not have been related by blood, but he was still my brother, no matter what. I wasn’t about to let some asshole threaten my brother’s well-being to get at me or anyone else in my family. I made my mind up right then. No one was going to hurt my brother.
Chapter Six
Jesse
‡
Bo’s Diner wasn’t that crowded, but it was past the weekday breakfast rush time. I glanced around, and was glad that my hunch had paid off. Over in the corner, with his back to the wall so he could see the entire place was Jason. As kids, we’d always had breakfast at Bo’s before school. Though I wasn’t in town, I had a feeling the tradition remained.
I slipped into the seat across from him at the table and noted the extra plate. “Kyle already gone?”
Jason nodded. “Yeah, his shift started early this morning. How’d you know?”
“You guys never did change up the routine all that much.”
Jason shrugged and shoved food into his mouth. He finished the bite he’d taken and then swallowed. “Guess not. So, what’s up? Didn’t expect you around before noon. Isn’t this supposed to be your vacation?”
I shrugged. “I’m used to getting up early. Can’t break the habit.”
The waitress appeared and I ordered a coffee. After she’d dropped it off, we talked a little about nothing for a bit, the equivalent of talking about the weather. Jason finally tossed his napkin on the table and asked. “So, what brings you to my office?” He gestured to the table.
“This is your office?”
“Well, that and my patrol car, but I have to share that.”
“What’s Charlie Morgan’s story?”
Jason narrowed his eyes, almost protective, which was interesting. Did Charlie need protection from something? “Are you looking for something specific?”
I wanted to know who that guy in the alley was, and I wanted to know why he was bothering Charlie. I didn’t think it was random. Muggers didn’t wear suits. But I needed to know about Charlie before I could figure that part out. “I just wondered.”
“Man, she really got under your skin the other night,” Jason said. “You bone her yet?”
“Don’t be an ass.” I shook my head. It fascinated me that Jason could be all big brother one minute, and then take on such amazing douchebag characteristics the next. He’d always been able to do it, too.
“That’s all I can be,” Jason professed. “What do you want to know?”
“I think… I don’t know.” I rubbed the top of my head, the frustration eating at me. There was something Charlie hadn’t told me, and while we’d just met, I found myself needing to know it all.
“You totally went gaga on her.”
I rolled my eyes. “I did not go gaga over her. I’m… interested.”
“Whatever, dude. Gagaing totally happened.” Jason shoveled the last of his pancakes down his throat and we sat in silence for a few seconds. Then he asked, “Is she in some kind of trouble?” The question was voiced quietly, a far cry from his normal, more jovial tone.
I shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe?”
Jason eyed me in silence. He knew something, but it seemed like he was sizing me up, wondering if it was worth it to tell me whatever it was. I didn’t like that Charlie had gotten so integrated into my friends and family and I’d never even known she was there. I was missing large parts of the Charlie Morgan puzzle; parts that I’d been too wrapped up in my own misery to notice when I was still living here. “What do you want to know?”
“I don’t know anything. That’s why I’m asking.”
“You can’t ask her?”
“I could. She’s… I don’t think she likes me too much,” I replied. “Just a little background is all I need.”
Jason sighed, and glanced over me, like he was trying to decide if he should say anything or not. “So, the Morgans adopted Charlie when she was thirteen, after CPS took her from her real dad.”
“Okay,” I said when Jason paused.
“Look,” Jason leaned forward, “I only know any of this because I took care of a little matter for her a year or two ago, and it required digging into her past a little.” He sighed. “I like Charlie. I do. But her father is bad news.”
“Curtis Morgan is the damn mayor.”
“Not him. Her biological father. About two years ago, he was in some trouble, and asked Charlie to help him, but it went wrong. The Morgans found out about it and there was this whole thing and they almost sent her back into the system. The agreement for staying was that she had
to cut ties with her father and they’d give her another chance.”
“Okay. She made a mistake.” I folded my hands together. “That doesn’t make her a bad person.”
“Really? You think after one night of her serving us drinks, you know her?” Jason’s eyes cased over me. “You’re already infatuated with her, aren’t you?”
“I’m not infatuated at all.” The truth was it wasn’t quite infatuation. It was… curiosity. I was attracted to her. That feeling gave me all kinds of caveman-esque feelings toward her. Maybe that was just my military training, and maybe that was just how my mind functioned. But I’d seen what happened to people who got involved with criminals and terrorists. I didn’t want that for her. Seeing people hurt and or watching someone die changed a person, and usually not for the better.
“Just be careful, okay? You almost seem human again, and I’d hate to see you regress back into the machine.”
“I am being careful. I’m always careful.”
“Yeah, uh-huh. Okay.” Jason stood up. “Look, I gotta go. I’m not saying you shouldn’t hang out with Charlie.”
“Well, that’s good, because you’re not my mommy.”
“You took Jane’s death hard. Too hard. I don’t want to see you turn into Cyborg Man again.” Jason replied> We said goodbye and he headed toward the door.
Had I been that bad? I’d been focused, sure. I had goals. But I’d achieved everything I’d wanted since I was a kid. I sat in the booth a while longer, sipping the rest of my coffee. Was I being too flippant about this? I was always careful, but I was ready to admit that I’d jumped into this situation with not a lot to go on. There was something about Charlie that just called to me. There was a vulnerability, deep inside her that I didn’t think that even she was aware of. It kept me intrigued, curious. Determined. She kept me wanting to come back for more.
And now that’d I kissed her? Now that I knew her taste, and her scent was tattooed inside my brain…
Shit. I was a lost cause.
*
Charlene
Five one hundred dollar bills burned a sad hole in my pocket, hot with the knowledge that in a few short minutes, that money would be gone. But it was right price to keep my family safe. Not that they would approve of my handling of the situation. But what choice did I have?
My dad would give me that look, the one he’d given me when they’d discovered that I’d still been working with Brent, even after I was supposed to not be in contact with him. Family was a funny thing, and in all honesty, I had two. I had Brent, who had raised me from the time my birth mother died when I was a baby to the day that CPS had come and taken me away.
The two were like polar opposites in electricity. One was stable, grounded. The other had an open circuit, a broken wire that threatened me with electrocution if I let it get too close.
I had been an embarrassment to my parents when they’d found out I was running cons, the adopted daughter of the chief of police, engaged in nefarious activities. It had even come up in the mayoral campaign last year, but my dad was so brilliantly good at heart and honest to a fault that the city mostly ignored the fact that I was his daughter or that I was a black mark on his otherwise perfect record. He was a saint for taking in such a troubled youth.
I had promised them that I’d do better, that I would straighten out, and I had… until now, when I was paying off a thug instead of reporting him. But I knew how Brent’s associates worked. They were too smart when it came to the police. If I reported it, they’d find a way to hurt me, or hurt someone I loved in retaliation. I was stuck, paying money when I knew that he’d just siphon me dry and keep on taking what he could.
And who was to say that Brent even owed him money? He could have been lying, but really, it was right up Brent’s alley. He’d always been that guy. He’d always been in debt. I couldn’t allow that to bleed over to the Morgans. They were too nice for that.
I glanced around, my eyes falling on Bo’s Diner for a moment, across the street. Jason was just leaving, and luckily, he wasn’t looking at me. He headed toward his patrol car instead.
I slowed my pace, making sure he stayed far enough in front of me. It wasn’t that I didn’t like Jason. It was just that he liked to ask questions, hard ones that would force me into lying to him. And I was pretty sure that Dad was using Jason to check up on me. But what was the point of being mayor and being the ex-chief of police if you couldn’t lean on the police force a little to get what you wanted? I just had to be careful and keep Jason from sniffing too close.
I veered off the street and down the alley toward the bar. I didn’t have to work, but it was the meeting place Smith had set when I called. Alleys. I hated alleys. Nothing good came out of an alley. It was a little chilly, the wind tunneling through the alley in a way it didn’t when it was open air. I had this feeling of dread that didn’t match the holly and lights decorating the outsides of the buildings around town. The entire town was in a festive mood, but me… I was stuck drowning in misery and fear. Alone.
“You’re early.”
I yelped and whirled around. Smith was across the way from me, smirking in that way that made me want to punch him in the face.
“Sorry, didn’t mean to frighten you,” he said, chuckling as he came closer.
“You don’t scare me.”
“If I didn’t, you wouldn’t be here,” he replied. “It’s really not my intention to scare you at this point in time, Charlene. I’m only here for the money owed me.”
“I’m not Brent. You should be searching for him.”
“He knew what would happen if I couldn’t find him or if he got himself killed,” Smith said. “The debts don’t disappear. He knew I’d be coming for you. So, really, this is mostly his fault.”
At least that we could both agree on. The second I found Brent, I was going to put my foot so far up his ass… Hell, what was I saying? Brent knew what he was doing. He didn’t care if Smith came after me. If he did, he wouldn’t have disappeared. He wouldn’t have stopped meeting me in the park. Things had gotten tough for Brent, and he did what Brent did best. He ran.
I glanced around. “I expected you to have bodyguards.”
He smiled. “I prefer to keep a low profile.”
“I could have hired goons to jump you right here,” I said. It didn’t seem right that he was alone.
“I’m giving you the benefit of the doubt.”
I took a breath, keeping myself calm. I pulled out the money from my purse, still encased in a paper envelope from the bank, and held it out to Smith. “Here. There’s five hundred there.”
“You’re such a good girl, Charlene.” Smith grinned. “We’re going to get along just fine.”
He started to reach for the money, but I pulled it back and pinned him the scariest stare I could muster. “There is a condition.”
“You’re not in any place to set stipulations.”
“Oh, but I am, Mr. Smith,” I said. I swallowed, steeling myself. “I’m paying your money. I’m not reporting you to the police, or even my dad. You know, the mayor. You leave my family out of this. You don’t go near them. You don’t even think about going near them. This arrangement is between you and me. That’s it.”
“You’re giving me orders?”
“On this matter, yes. I will pay your money, and I will toe the line, and you will leave them alone.”
“What about your boy toy from the other night?” he asked. “The one that accosted me?”
“He’s not an issue.” Nope, I was going to keep Jesse far from this situation too. The man had a hero complex, and he had no business around me. I wasn’t the angel he thought I was.
Smith stroked his chin thoughtfully, running his index finger along his jawline. “Your family is my insurance. I lean on them and I make sure you pay.”
“Not anymore,” I snarled. “You deal with me and me alone. Touch them, and the payments stop. If I miss a payment, it’s on me and you will deal with me alone.”
/> He chuckled again. “Oh, you are so like your father, Charlene. I like you.”
“Do we have an agreement?”
“What the hell, I’ll bite. Okay. I’ll leave them out of it. But you miss a payment, love, and you’re mine.”
I puffed up my chest, and held out the money again. “Deal.”
Smith snagged the money before I could take it back again. He spread out the bills so he could see each one, and then slid them back together and put them into his pocket. “Brent was right about you. You’re not one to be intimidated, are you?”
“Let’s not find out, Mr. Smith.”
He didn’t seem intimidated by me at all, but I hoped I’d gotten my point across. I needed this to be about me and me alone. Not about my family. He inclined his head at me. “See you next Monday, Charlene.”
As he walked way, dread crept back into my blood, icing it down from the hot courage I’d managed to muster up only seconds before. It wasn’t until he disappeared around the corner that I sagged against the dirty bricks and let out the biggest sigh of relief I ever had.
My family was safe. At least there was that. But now, I’d just put myself on the line. If I missed one payment, my life was forfeit. God, even thinking that way sounded ominous.
Chapter Seven
Jesse
‡
Slowly, I backed Vince’s truck with the supplies for the porch up into the Morgans’ driveway. I didn’t want to be there. Hell, it was early, and I didn’t even want to be awake. Not that I ever slept in, but I liked the idea of not being required to leave my bed at a certain time.
My lips still throbbed from the kiss on her porch the day before, but I wasn’t about to lose myself in that feeling with my brothers with me. Vince would never let me hear the end of it, and Coby was no better. And she’d said no to dinner, which meant I was there chasing after something that would never happen.
That was what I wanted, right? No attachments? No relationships. Hell, the idea of sex had never appealed… at least not until I’d met Charlie. Letting go of Jane was hard, and every part of me rebelled against forgetting her, but Charlie was real, and soft, and she was already taking over my mind.