Her mother always told her to look into a person’s eyes because they never lied. Words were easy to twist and turn to make them look more enticing, but the eyes were the mirror to who they truly were on the inside.
Amara’s heart grew heavier at the memory of her amazing mother. There wasn’t a better woman in the world than her. She loved her parents dearly and missed both of them every single day.
Brushing a tear away from the corner of her eye, she walked around the corner of the pet shop and suddenly froze in her tracks as her gaze landed on a guy who looked very familiar coming out of the tattoo shop next door. Stopping next to a dark blue motorcycle, he pulled a black and silver cell phone out of his pocket.
No, it couldn’t be. Why was this happening to her today?
Amara knew immediately who he was. She would never forget him in a million years. He was the other man from the bar that night. Now, he wasn’t Dante, the bastard who wanted to have her arrested, but his friend Griffin who thought Dante should let her go with only a firm warning.
Dante’s angry face still sometimes haunted her at night in her dreams. She had never seen someone so furious before. He had left a burning impression on her. She still felt the warmth from his fingers on her arm for days after the incident was over.
God, Amara didn’t know what to do. She was torn since she promised to meet Liam and Theresa at the park and this was the fastest way to get there. However, she would have to walk right past his guy knowing he knew who she was.
Why was he still standing next to his motorcycle like he didn’t have a care in the world? She could tell he wasn’t in a hurry to leave, but she wished he would get on his bike and just ride away.
Could she actually be lucky enough that an adequate amount of time had passed and he wouldn’t remember her?
She wasn’t around him long enough for anything about her to have set in his mind and she was covered up by the hoodie until she made a break for it at the end.
Besides, why would anyone who looked like Dante still be thinking about a homeless black girl. He probably had a lot more going on in his life to have even given her a second thought since that horrible night weeks ago.
Pushing her growing fears away, Amara took a deep breath and continued walking down the sidewalk trying to make her body as small as possible, so she wouldn’t get noticed. The closer she got to Griffin the more panic set into her body making the urge to run past him even greater, but she kept herself calm. She wasn’t going to give him any kind of reason to notice her.
Keeping her head down, she tried not to look at Griffin but she got an eerie sensation like she was being watched as the hairs on the back on her neck stood up. Slowly, Amara turned her head and almost stumbled over her feet when she noticed he was no longer on his cell phone, but his eyes were fixed directly on her.
His eyes raked over her studying her with a curious intensity like he couldn’t quite figure out where he had seen her before. Slowly, Amara watched his face light up with recognition.
“Hey, don’t move. I want to talk to you. It’s important,” he said, taking a step in her direction. “Dante has been looking all over for you. He wants to talk to you about what happened.”
Icy fear twisted around her heart as Amara took a step back. She couldn’t allow him to take her back to the bar. Dante hated her and it wouldn’t do her any good to listen to anything he had to tell her.
“No, I don’t know what you are talking about,” Amara lied, taking another huge step back putting more space between their bodies.
She knew she had to get away from him and fast. She silently cursed herself for not turning around and going the other way. Yeah, it might have taken her longer to get to the park, but she wouldn’t be in this situation right now.
“We both know you’re lying. Look, my name is Griffin Bell. As you already know, I’m friends with Dante and I don’t want to hurt you. All I want to do is take you back to him. I swear he isn’t as unbending as he came off during the rainstorm. Just listen to me and let me take you back to the bar to see him.”
Go back! Was he out of his damn mind?
He was crazy! Amara couldn’t believe that he actually wanted her to go back to that place and talk to Dante. It didn’t matter he was an absolutely gorgeous man. Shit! She hadn’t lost her mind and she sure in the hell wasn’t about to let Griffin take her anywhere. She would give him a fight that he wasn’t prepared for.
“I don’t care what your name or his name is. Stay away from me. I’m not about to go anywhere with you. Keep your distance,” she warned, pointing a finger in his direction.
Griffin shook his head and moved even closer to her. “Sorry, I can’t do that. You’re coming with me, so don’t give me any problems.”
Before Amara could move again, Griffin suddenly grabbed her by the arm and pulled her back in the direction of the tattoo shop. Instantly, she started struggling and pulling at his tight grip but she couldn’t shake him loose, but she wasn’t about to give up.
In the past, she had found ways out of a lot of tougher situations than this one she was in right now. All she had to do was stop panicking and use her head. She was smart enough to outthink this guy because she wouldn’t be able to beat him in a test of strength.
“Sir, you don’t really want to take me all the way back to the bar. I didn’t do anything wrong. Your friend Dante lost his temper with me for no good reason and I’m not about to take the blame for it.”
Griffin stopped dragging her behind him and glanced down at her. His gray eyes never left hers for a moment while he used his free hand to grab his cell phone out of back pocket.
“I’m not about to let you get away a second time,” he told her. “So, just stop trying to talk your way out of this. You’ve caused enough problems for yourself. All you have to do is stand here while I make this phone call.”
Disbelief shook Amara’s small frame as she stood there in shock watching as Griffin dialed his phone. She didn’t even need three guesses to know Dante would be on the other end.
“Let go of me,” she screamed, restarting her intense struggle to get loose.
A bruise might be there tomorrow because of his fingers, but Amara didn’t care at all. All she was thinking about at the moment was breaking away from Griffin.
“Stop making this harder than it is,” he snapped at her. “I’m not going to hurt you. Why won’t you listen to me?”
“Sure you aren’t,” Amara flung back. “I don’t know you from Adam. I’m not about to take your word.”
His eyes grew stony from sudden anger as he glared at her. “Good thing I’m not interested in the opinion of a homeless teenage girl or my feelings might be hurt.”
Instantly, Amara stopped struggling and stood perfectly still staring up at Griffin. She couldn’t believe he actually thought she was a teenager. She had been told before she looked young, but she never thought she could pass for a teenager. Maybe this might work in her favor if Dante thought she was in her teens instead of her twenties. Right at this moment, she would take any help she could get.
“Dante, what took you so long to answer the phone?” Griffin complained.
She leaned closer so she could hear Dante’s warm, deep rich voice. She might be scared of him, but her fears didn’t take away from how attractive he was. She would be a liar if she didn’t think he wasn’t a nice-looking man.
“I was outside throwing away trash.” Amara heard Dante answer as she took another tiny step closer to Griffin. “Are you still at Inked? How much longer are you going to be there? I’ve something I want to talk to you about concerning the pool tournament.”
“How was I supposed to know you were throwing away the trash?” Griffin questioned. “Yes, I’m still at the tattoo shop and you will never guess who I have standing right here next to me.”
She heard Dante answer. “Why don’t you just tell me?”
Amara knew she shouldn’t be eavesdropping, but she couldn’t help it. Something about D
ante’s voice just drew her to listen to him. A tiny part of her wanted to know what Dante would say. Did he still want to toss her in jail or did he not even care anymore and would tell Griffin to just let her go?
“I found the girl who got away from you during the rainstorm,” Griffin said, taking another look in her direction as she tugged at her arm again.
“Are you sure it’s her?” Dante asked. “Bring her back to the bar. I want to talk to her.”
Amara didn’t miss the excitement in his deep voice and knew he was probably thrilled at the thought of getting his hands on her again, but it wasn’t going to happen. She would find a way out of this. All she had to do was calm down and think. Her wits were the best thing about her and they kept her safe out here on the streets more times than she could count.
“Yeah, I’m positive it’s her,” Griffin replied. “I know you want to see her. That’s why I’m going to bring her to you. Caleb is at the shop, so I’ll get his car and have him bring my bike to the bar.”
The longer Amara stood there listening to the conversation, the faster a new emotion settled into her body about coming face to face with Dante again. He really wanted to bring her down. Dante wasn’t going to give up on punishing her about the food.
Her mind burned with the memory of him and it was pure and clear. If she got within touching distance of him again, he wouldn’t let her escape him for a second time. At that split second self- preservation took over giving Amara the strength she needed to fight even harder.
“No, I’m not going back there with you.” She yanked her arm away, shocking Griffin. Spinning around, she raced towards the park praying she would be able to lose him in the crowd of people.
Chapter Eight
The faster Amara ran, the fainter the sound of Griffin’s voice got behind her until she could no longer hear it. Once she got inside of the park, she headed straight for the iron bench where Liam had found her the first night she slept on the streets. The sight of him and Theresa still sitting there waiting for her was a welcoming sight. Her two best friends always had an instant calming effect on her racing nerves.
“Liam, Theresa. I’m so glad to see the two of you here.” Amara gasped as she ran around the bench and stopped in front of them.
“What’s wrong?” Liam asked concern ringing out in his voice as he jumped up from the seat. “You’re late and you’re never late.”
“I ran into a problem.” she answered, sitting down next to Theresa. “One of the guys from the bar caught me outside Inked, the tattoo shop on Scherm Ave. I thought he wouldn’t recognize me, but I was so wrong.”
Placing her hand over her pounding heart, she took several breaths trying to calm down. She had gotten away from Griffin. He hadn’t followed her into the park, so everything was good on her end.
“Oh God, Amara are you sure that you’re okay?” Theresa questioned, touching her on the leg. “Liam told me about the jerk who wanted to call the cops on you.”
“I’m okay,” she assured her friend, patting her hand. “I was only caught off guard by him. I truly wasn’t expecting the guy to remember me. I mean I was only around him and Dante for probably no longer than ten minutes.”
Theresa placed her other hand on top of hers giving it a squeeze. “Amara, I hate you‘re still living out here on the streets begging and stealing food. Why don’t you move in with me? I have an extra room at my condo.”
Easing her hand away, Amara frowned at Theresa. “When did you get a condo? I thought you were staying with Ike across town at his place?”
“Ike got it for me last week for doing such a good job for him. He told me that he couldn’t have his best girl without her own place. Please stay with me,” Theresa said, grabbing her hand again. “The place is so big and he only comes over twice a week to tell me where to go now. I don’t like being there all by myself. We can have a girl’s night anytime we want.”
Without hurting Theresa feelings, Amara tried to think of a nice way to turn down her offer. She didn’t want to be anywhere Ike could show up at any given minute. He wanted her to become one of his ‘girls’ and she wasn’t interested in using her body to gain shelter and food.
“Theresa, I—” she stalled still searching for the right words to say.
“Didn’t I tell you not to bring that up to her?” Liam jumped into the conversation. He took a seat on the other side of the bench next to her. “She doesn’t want to live under the same roof as you and the men you take care of every night. Why would you ask her to lower herself like that? What is wrong with you?”
“How dare you judge me, Liam? You don’t know all of what I went through living out here before Ike took me in. If you have a problem with what I do to stay warm and keep food in my stomach then I shouldn’t be around you,” Theresa hollered getting up from her seat.
Amara grabbed her friend by the arm preventing her from storming off. She hadn’t seen Theresa in weeks and she didn’t want her to leave before finding out what else was going on with her.
“Theresa, please don’t leave. I want to know where you have been. You know how much I worry about you.” Theresa yanked her arm out of her grasp and then shot Liam a hard look. “Amara, I would love to catch up with you but I don’t want to get another lecture from the ‘high and mighty I-never-do-anything-wrong’ Liam over there.”
Amara looked at Liam and then back at Theresa. “Can’t you just ignore him? You know how protective he can be about the two of us.”
“I know you and Liam can't stand what I do for a living, but I can’t be like the two of you,” Theresa said. “Sleeping on the cold ground underneath boxes and a garage bag isn’t something I can handle. Both of you know how difficult it was for me before Ike came into my life.”
Amara believed Theresa’s life had gotten worst since Ike took an interest in her, but her girlfriend didn’t see it the same way as they did. She was too blinded by what he had already done for her, not seeing what it was costing her now every time she went with one of those men. It seemed like the best part of Theresa was disappearing.
Ike had approached her more than once offering his ‘help’, but she wasn’t crazy or desperate enough to take anything that asshole was offering out of the goodness of his heart. Did he actually think she was dumb enough to let him into her life?
No way in hell!
Both of her parents would turn over in their graves if she allowed herself to be used that way each and every night. She might be starving and cold most of the time, but she wasn’t down or out enough to be a ‘professional escort’ like Theresa.
“Please stay. He isn’t going to say another word to you. I promise,” Amara said, giving Liam a glance over her shoulder. “Can’t you stay here for a little while longer? I’ve missed talking to you.”
Sighing, Theresa ran her hand through her curly, black hair. “I know I’m going to regret staying here, but I can do it for a few minutes.” Retaking a seat back on the bench next to her, she pulled the hem of her short skirt over her knees. “So, besides getting chased down the sidewalk by some strange guy, what other trouble have you gotten yourself into lately?”
“I haven’t been doing much at all. I’m looking for a new spot to sleep now. I’ve spent enough time taking shelter behind Mr. Lee’s cleaners. It’s not safe there anymore,” Amara answered.
From the corner of her eye, Amara noticed how Liam was watching the both of them like he was dying to tell them something. Liam kept so many secrets from her that she never knew what he was thinking about. He wasn’t big on opening up to people because he thought in the end no one was going to be there for him.
“Liam, come and sit down beside us. I want all of us to have a good conversation,” she said. Amara hated when he isolated himself away from them. She missed her fun-loving friend.
Liam shook his head causing a lock of his hair to fall across his forehead. She only had two best friends to confide in and losing either one of them wasn’t an option.
“I’
m sorry I can’t do it. I was trying to talk Theresa into leaving Ike before you ran up to us,” he admitted to her. “I won’t stay here and pretend that I’m pleased with the way she earns her money. You can do it, but I’m out of here.”
Taken back by Liam’s surprising outburst Amara sat and watched as he turned around and stalked off away from her and Theresa. He headed back down the jogging path without even saying goodbye to either one of them. She wondered if something else was going on with Liam that he wasn’t telling her. In all of the time she had known him, he had never lost his temper like this with them.
Something had to be going on and she would find him later to find out what it was. He might open up more to her if Theresa wasn’t around since it was usually just the two of them.
“What’s his problem?” Amara asked, glancing back at Theresa.
Theresa shrugged her shoulder. “I don’t have a clue. He was already in a bad mood when I met him here. Go after him because I know you want to and he’ll tell you what’s bothering him. He never opens up to me the way he does you. I know how close the two of you are with each other.”
“Are you sure?” She worried about Liam’s state of mind.
Amara wanted to go after Liam, but she couldn’t just leave Theresa like she wasn’t important to her, too. She was the only female that befriended her the first week Liam had introduced her to everyone. For some reason, the other homeless girls found ways to push her out of their close knit groups. It was almost like they found stupid reasons not to want her around them.
“Yes, I’m positive,” Theresa answered “Anyways, Ike is probably waiting for me at the condo. He doesn’t like it when I’m gone too long for a visit with my old friends.” Giving her a quick kiss on the cheek, Theresa got up from the bench and walked off towards the other side of the park where the parking lot was located, disappearing from sight.
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