Sweet Seduction Sacrifice

by Nicola Claire

  "OK, sweetheart," Dominic answered, catching me as I passed, to lay a kiss on my temple which threatened my resolve in less than two seconds flat. I stalled where I was, then took a deep breath and walked out of the kitchen.

  I swiped Jason's car key's off the side table in the lounge where he had probably sat when he first arrived last night, nabbed my handbag from the hall stand and slipped out the front door. I didn't bother with shoes, I'd grab them when I got there. I ran down the front steps, ignoring the beautifully manicured front garden and beeped the locks on Jason's SUV.

  Before I thought better of my plan, I started it up and quietly pulled away from the curb.

  I was done with being the damsel in distress. I was done with someone else calling the shots. I was a grown woman, it was time I acted like one.

  I bit my bottom lip the entire way into town.

  Chapter 14

  The Mother Of All Hissy Fits

  It took twenty minutes to get to the CBD, but an unbelievable twenty minutes longer to find a suitable carpark near either Emily Place or High Street. Sundays in Auckland city were chronic. Finally I found one around the corner on Shortland, beeping the doors closed on Jason's car, I high-tailed it to my loft first. Walking city streets in bare feet is just plain gross.

  Wayne was struggling with grocery bags as I snuck onto our hallway landing, his head swivelling as though he could hear my silent feet. Another perceptive listener. He smiled as soon as he recognised me and then quickly frowned when I stepped into a shaft of sunlight, which emphasised my bruising and swollen nose.

  "Holy hell, sweetie. What on earth happened to you? Was it that ex of yours?" His eyes glinted a steely resolve I had never seen in my neighbour before. Wayne was a gentle giant. He hardly ever raised his voice, let alone looked like he could throw a punch or two, like he did right now.

  "Um..." I said, because to be truthful, Wayne looked a little scary right now and I wasn't sure what admitting Brett's complicity in my injuries would provoke in him.

  He sighed and put the shopping bags down and then walked the few feet to me at my door.

  "Gen, I do hope you're getting some help with this. The police?" he asked, concern evident in his tone.

  "I have a lawyer, as you know, and the police are involved. I also have an investigations and security firm looking out for me." Which reminded me, I better get a move on, I was sure ASI was watching the loft and the chances of Brett finding me here were going to be slim after the last disastrous attempt by Lofty and Greeny. I wasn't sure that lightning, even Brett's kind of lightning, would strike twice in the same spot.

  Wayne seemed to relax a little at my words, but there was still an undercurrent of intense emotion on the air around him. I was picking it was a mixture of anger and concern.

  "I'm OK," I added, because yes, it was now officially my mantra. He scoffed slightly, but didn't argue the point outright with me.

  "What are your plans today then?" he asked, leaning his body against the wall of my apartment.

  "Checking in on Sweet Seduction," I announced, slipping my key in my door.

  "You don't normally go in on a Sunday," he commented.

  "Didn't get the accounts finished on Friday, have to do some catch up." It wasn't really a lie, I did need to do some catch up, but that wasn't why I was going there.

  "Do you want an escort?" I felt immediately full of unconditional love for my neighbour. Wayne was not military elite like my brother, he wasn't a trained bodyguard like those of ASI, and not even remotely a killer lawyer, but in his own way he was offering what he could to make me feel safe. I couldn't swallow past the lump in my throat for a second. He had no idea what he was offering to get involved in.

  "You don't need to do that," I said softly. "It's just round the corner, I'll be fine."

  "Give me five minutes to pack away my groceries and then we'll go, OK?" he insisted, and I could tell there would be no arguing with him. He may not have been a bad-ass hottie of the hot rush bunch, but he was most definitely a hottie in my books.

  "Thanks, sweetie," I said, not able to voice anything else right then.

  I didn't wait to watch him go back to his apartment door, just slipped inside the loft to get myself sorted. Five minutes later, after washing my feet - I could not see my way to slipping dirty feet into clean shoes - there was a rap on the door. I'd grabbed a lightweight jacket as well as some killer slip-on sandals, with two inch heels. I may where flats during the week, but on the weekends I splurge. I checked the peep-hole to make sure it was Wayne and then spotting his signature checked shirt, unlocked the door.

  "Ready?" he asked.

  "As I'll ever be," I replied and got a frown for my efforts. "Come on," I said quickly to cover, grabbing my handbag and shutting the door behind me, "lets get going. There's work to be done." And an ex-boyfriend to confront.

  I had no idea where to find Brett, if I did then ASI would have found him by now. But I did know that my apartment would be off limits after the Lofty incident. That left Sweet Seduction. Brett would be watching the place, I was sure, and as there had not been any problems there so far, I was hoping to fly under everyone else's radar. It was a risk, but I had nowhere else to go to get Brett's attention. If I was going to sort this out once and for all, I needed to speak to Brett and doing that on my turf made me feel stronger than if I confronted him elsewhere. Sweet Seduction was mine. He'd be entering my domain.

  Wayne chatted away breezily about his and Edward's upcoming holiday plans and the fact he was considering writing a mystery novel. Up until now his books were all firmly in the horror genre, but he said it was time he branched out a little. I gave him the obligatory encouragement where necessary and nods of agreement on cue, but really my mind was elsewhere. Every shadowy recess on the sidewalk caught my attention. Every tree in the park across the street that rustled almost made me jump. Car horns and loud shouts were terrifying and it occurred to me that Brett had successfully taken something else that was mine.

  He'd taken my acceptance and comfort in the city. All of a sudden every nook and cranny seemed to harbour a ghost or a threat. I didn't walk the street relishing the city sights and sounds, I cringed the entire way and prayed for the short walk to be over. I was thankful for Wayne's presence, but I had never needed anyone to walk me to work before. Hell it was a couple of hundred metres up the road and around the corner. I couldn't have lived closer to Sweet Seduction unless I tried. But that short trip was a nightmare and without Wayne chattering away, obscuring some of the scary noises, I'm not entirely sure I would have made it.

  I hated Brett for that.

  Sweet Seduction had always been my dream, I never failed to feel complete when I walked through those swing doors. But today it was also my haven. I couldn't cross that threshold quickly enough, waiting only as long as it took Wayne to step inside before I shut the doors. And then I had to force myself not to flick the locks shut behind us. That would defeat the purpose of having customers come in and purchase goods and Brett arrive to confront.

  Wayne watched me silently, well aware I was not myself. Even the 80's music playing didn't lift my spirits like it usually did. Weekends was always "eighties" at Sweet Seduction. Guns and Roses' Welcome to the Jungle blaring out of the speakers, but not making me feel welcome at all. I flicked my gaze around the seated area, taking in the large crowd, and the busy chocolate and espresso counters. Everyone enjoying themselves, Jane and our weekend barista Karla in full swing. Normally I'd feel uplifted seeing the business pouring through the shop. I'd step in and give the girls a break for a few minutes. I'd allow myself to immerse in the beauty of Sunday rush at Sweet Seduction. Everyone being seduced by the music, the chocolate and the exceptionally good coffee.

  But not today. Today I was on edge. Every bang of the portafilter against the dump bin making my body jump slightly. The elevated conversation grating on my nerves. And for once in my life, the first time since I discovered music at twelve, I wanted to turn the volum
e down. I began biting my bottom lip, standing just inside the door, unable to take another step inside.

  "Sweetie," Wayne said in the softest of soft voices at my side. "This is ridiculous. I've never seen you like this, Gen. Why don't I take you home. You can come over to our place and lounge out on the couch. I'll make us Tortillas for lunch. Edward's got a hankering for Mexican. I've been teasing him, that he's got all he can handle in a Pakeha boy, but I'm treating him to Tortillas anyway."

  I stared at him, thinking his offer sounded pretty good, that it would be so easy to turn my back on my responsibilities and bury my head in the sand. But that would only lead Jason to storm in and handle things for me. If I had any hope of growing up and fighting my own battles, I needed to do it here. At least at Sweet Seduction I was safe, I was home, it was familiar territory. I had to do this, and there was simply no better place and no other time than now.

  I straightened my shoulders and took a deep breath in.

  "I'm OK," I said with conviction.

  "The more you say that, the less likely I'm to believe a word," Wayne commented quietly, almost as though to himself. Then he smiled, deciding it would seem, to humour me. "How about you make me and Edward a couple of Vanilla Lattes to go. I'm on a mission the expand that man's horizons."

  "Well," I answered, a hint of sarcasm coming back into my tone at last, "if it's horizons you want to expand, steer clear of vanilla, he's already tried that." I gave his lilly white skin a deliberate sweep of my eyes. "How about a Chocolate Dalmatian?"

  "Now that sounds interesting, sweetie. Set me up."

  I slipped in behind the counter and gave Jane a brief hug, brushing off her and Karla's concerned looks at my face, but feeling more and more myself as the world returned to a semi-normal state. Jane's been my weekend manager since I opened, even in the days I worked almost 24/7 it seemed. She's trustworthy, dedicated and a coffee addict. Chocolate Dalmatians made it onto our espresso menu because of her. She's also a stunner. Short spiky brown hair in an elf-like cut, makes her petite facial features stand out, drawing the eye to her cupids bow lips and perky upturned nose. She wears the Sweet Seduction uniform, but always adds a twist. Today it was several strings of beads in a multitude of colours around her neck, all clattering as she moved and swayed to the music.

  After sending her on a much needed break, I slipped in beside Karla and started on Wayne's drinks. Our espresso machine is a beast, big enough for two people to operate side by side without issue. Karla was singing the last lines of Welcome to the Jungle as I rubbed shoulders in greeting.

  "Howzit?" she sang between song lyrics. "Wondered if you'd turn up today."

  Karla's been with me for just on twelve months. She's studying at Auckland University during the week and spends her weekends in the shop earning enough to pay her tuition fees - and probably her social habits as well, I don't ask. She's what I'd call a typical laid back student. I often wondered why she didn't go to Otago, down south - she had that Scarfie look to her. Grunge dress style, blonde dreadlocks tied back in multi coloured intertwined strands, a stud in her nose and eyebrow, and about six in one ear. She wore the uniform too, but only under duress.

  "Thought I'd catch up on some work," I replied before the next song, Dexy's Midnight Runners' Come On Eileen really got going. Karla nodded to the music, but it could have been a nod of acknowledgement as well. It was hard to tell.

  "Brett came in a little while ago," she said as she pushed a take-away cup across the bench and then proceeded to yell at the top of her lungs, "Skinny Hazelnut Latte to go!"

  I just about dropped the cup I was wedging under the portafilter nozzle. He'd been here. I was right. If the place was being watched, he would have been picked up as he came in. It also meant he expected me to show. I flicked a glance at the door half expecting to see him saunter in, but there was just a group of young teenagers, laden down with designer shopping bags.

  "Did he say anything?" I asked, leaning over so I didn't have to shout.

  "Nah, just swept his gaze over the joint and then shot out the door as though his butt was on fire."

  Hmm, OK he was playing it safe. I wasn't here, he didn't stick around. But that didn't mean he wasn't watching from outside and already knew I had turned up. My palms began to sweat with anticipation and for the first time that day I wondered if I had made a mistake. If I shouldn't have been trying to do this alone. To fix my problem by myself. And then I cursed inwardly, told myself to harden the fuck up, and finished off the Chocolate Dalmatians to hand over to Wayne.

  "Hey, Wayno!" Karla shouted above Come On Eileen's chorus.

  "Hey, Karla baby," Wayne replied with his usual come back, reaching for the cups I had just lidded. "Behaving yourself, sweetie?"

  "Never. You?" she replied with a bang of her portafilter.

  "What would be the fun in that?"

  Normally their banter would make me smile, but my stomach had started churning with the prospect of facing Brett again. Of doing what I needed to do to end this once and for all. I knew I had made the right decision, that I really had no choice or all would be lost, but for some reason I felt a chill of unease seep into my bones. As though my body was trying to tell me something my brain hadn't cottoned on to yet.

  I gave Wayne a kiss on the cheek, repeated that I was OK when he frowned at my face, and hustled him out the door. He didn't need to see me selling my soul to the devil. For now I'd minimise the fallout if I could, which was why it had to be today, on the weekend, when Jane and Karla were here. I loved them both, but I wasn't as close to them as I was to Kelly, or even Lucas for that matter. Lucas would keep mum, he rarely offers unsolicited advice, but Kelly would interfere. She'd proven she could by phoning my brother and getting him involved. Which was the second reason why it had to be today. Jason would be on the streets tonight, along with ASI and the police no doubt, because that would be when they would think finding Brett had the greatest chance. I had to get to Brett before they did, before they had a chance to stuff things up and lose me my dream.

  Not to mention I needed to fix this myself, if I was ever to be a bona fide adult and stand on my own two feet.

  Half an hour later and still no sign of Brett. I'd given Karla a brief break as well and now found myself simply sorting LPs and CDs out the back, with my eye on the front of the shop and ears open for any sign of my loser ex-boyfriend. The longer it took for him to show, the more uptight I became. Every time the door jangled as it opened, my chest would squeeze and my heart would leap up into my throat. It was an instant reaction which took several minutes to subside. If I kept this up for the rest of the day I'd be a nervous wreck by four, when the shop closed.

  Willing myself to relax, which was not entirely successful, but I was giving it my best shot, the door clanged open an hour after I had arrived. I felt the tension in the air change immediately and flicked my gaze up to see who had arrived. The door was closed again and no one stood out as having just entered the store. I shrugged, grateful my heart hadn't leapt into my throat that time, my mental exercises finally paying off and returned my attention to the 'R' section of CDs I was alphabetising. REM, Radio Flyer, Rage Against the Machine, Bonnie Raitt, Jimmy Ray - we have an eclectic mix and they're all kind of grouped together, makes for an interesting browse every time - and had finally made it to The Red Hot Chilli Peppers when I felt a heat at my back. No sound, no flicker of movement out of the corner of my eye - and he would have had to approach on an angle that announced his presence, so how I didn't see a flicker is beyond me - just a heat down my back and the sure knowledge that I was no longer alone in the dungeon.

  I swung around, Red Hot Chilli Peppers out and ready to do damage and met the amused chocolate brown eyes of Ben Tamati - ASI bodyguard and resident bad-ass, bad boy, hottie.

  He plucked the CD out of my hand and gave it a quick perusal. "Like me some Chillies," he said in a drawl, then reached past me and placed it in the exact spot that it needed to go, between Red Flag and Red Ra
dio Flyer. He pulled back and looked at me, amusement all gone from those incredibly tasty looking eyes. My mouth was obviously open in shock, because he said, "Hello, Princess. Were you expectin' someone else?"

  I shook my head, forcing my mouth to close and trying to effect a casual stance. His eyes grazed over my body. I say grazed, because he took his sweet time coming back up to my face. I refused to cross my arms over my chest in defence, I was doing nothing wrong and I was not going to show it.

  "Dom wants you back," he stated, as if it was obvious and quite an acceptable request.

  "I'm working," I shot back, tossing my hair over my shoulder. Ben's gaze came up and watched the movement with fascination.

  "Not a good move, Princess," he replied, still eyeing my hair.

  I bristled. "It's my shop, I can be here if I want to." God that sounded mature.

  He huffed a laugh out and crossed his arms. "Brett Elliott was spotted here this morning." Oh hell, they knew and more alarmingly, they'd been watching the shop. "The only reason Nick allowed you to stay here so long, was because we were on his tail and knew he was nowhere near here when you arrived. But now Dominic is getting antsy, he wants you back home and safe. You've had your moment to spread your wings, it's time to fly home, Princess, and be a good girl."

  He did not just tell me to be a good girl.

  "Thanks, but I'm fine," I said returning to my CDs.

  "I will carry you out of here if you resist," he said calmly over my shoulder making me swing back round to glare at him accusingly - and probably a little sceptically.

  "Like hell!"

  "No skin off my nose, Princess. Been a while since I wrapped my arms around one as fine as you, no sweat to me either way. Just sayin'."

  "You're crazy," I declared.

  "Just doin' my job," he shot back.

  "Which is to manhandle me and kidnap me from my store."

  "Ain't kidnappin' if it's for your own good."

  "That's a crock of shit and you know it. Whose to say your idea of my good is the right one."