One of the things she remembered her father telling her was no matter how hard things got for her never give up...because something good or better could be right around the corner waiting for her.
Blowing out a breath, Amara got herself back together determined not to get down today because this was the first time in a very, very long while that she actually had enough cash in her pocket to keep herself fed for a while. Not taking the gift she was given today would be a sin, so why was she still sitting here complaining?
Grabbing the backpack, Amara placed it back on her shoulder and got up from the bench. She couldn’t even think back to the last time she ate a taco therefore she was going to treat herself by getting two.
However, she only wished Liam and Theresa were here with her. Somehow after she got herself out of this environment, she would help both of her best friends find a better existence too.
Chapter Twelve
Parking his bike in front of Inked, Dante got off pushing his sunglasses to the top of his head. From the corner of his eye, he noticed two hot women wearing short skirts and hot pink bikini tops stop walking and stare at him.
There would have been a time, instead of going inside the shop, he would have started up a conversation with them, but he wasn’t going down that same path anymore. He was almost forty-three years old and he needed to focus his attention on having something more stable and long-lasting in his life.
Ignoring their hungry and lingering looks in his direction, Dante continued going into his old shop. Once he finally made it inside he noticed the amount of clients being worked on by Griffin and the rest of the staff. Business was still hot and heavy at the shop which was a good thing since his name was still on the lease for the place.
Walking up to the front desk, Dante folded his arms on the top grinning at the aggravated person sitting behind it glaring at him. “So, did you lose the coin toss this time and that’s why you’re sitting here instead of Griffin?”
“Funny, I’m glad you have jokes,” Caleb snapped. “I would rather be tattooing than sitting here. Do you know when Griffin is going to hire someone to take over this job?”
“We talked about it the other day when he was at the bar,” Dante answered. “He told me he was working on it.”
“I thought he was going to place an ad for a replacement for Katie,” Caleb complained, leaning back in his chair. “I’ve spent the last two mornings answering the telephone and I’m tired of it. I want to be working on someone to show off my own personal designs.”
For as long as Dante had known him, Caleb wasn’t a complainer. He was pretty easy going allowing most things to roll off of his back easily. So, the situation at the tattoo shop must be getting out of hand for Caleb to bring it up to him like this.
“All right, since I need to place an ad for a new waitress, I’ll go ahead and place one for the shop too while I’m at it,” Dante said. “I’ll probably put them on Tanners list since it will get me a faster response.”
“Who quit?”
“Bambi...She got pissed off because I didn’t want to do things her way. I’m so glad I dodged that bullet with her. She was getting way too crazy for me. She had plans in her head about becoming a bigger part of my life, but when she thought she could help me run the bar I knew I had to get rid of her. Thankfully, she quit before I fired her crazy ass.”
His jaw clenched; his eyes slightly narrowed. Caleb sat up straighter in his seat. “Are you fucking kidding me? Why would Bambi get that idiotic idea in her head? I swear she is the pain in the ass I always thought she was.”
Dante had to admit Bambi did a good job of covering her real personality from him. He should have fired her that night when she insulted Jim and Keira on their first date at his business, but back then he needed her help too much to be an employee short. Today was a different story and he wasn’t going to let her come back even if she begged him to give her old job back.
“You’re right. Bambi was good at being very deceitful, but now she’s out of my life and away from the bar. Enough about her, how are things going at the shop? Are we getting more walk-ins now?”
“Walk-ins are getting better since Griffin decided to do the promotion last month,” Caleb told him.
He wanted to make sure his customer ratio stayed the same at the tattoo shop. Despite the fact he didn’t work here full time anymore, this place still held a huge part of his heart. Failure wasn’t an option when it came to Inked. He wanted everything he touched to be golden because he still felt like he had a lot to prove to himself.
“Dante, you didn’t come all the way here to discuss the ins and outs of what’s going on down on the end of town. So why are you here?” Caleb asked, watching him closely. “Is there something wrong Griffin or I should know about? Are things going slow at the bar?”
What was going on with him? Dante wondered. The thought barely crossed him mind before another followed. Something was going on with him, but he couldn’t quite figure out actually what it was which meant he couldn’t tell Caleb anything.
“I don’t know what it is,” he answered, honestly. “It just seems like I’m searching for something but I can’t get a read on the void I’m trying to fill.”
Tapping his fingers on the arm of the leather chair, Caleb studied him for a few minutes. “Do you think you have too much going on and you aren’t able to handle it? I mean you have two businesses that are doing quite well for you in this economy.”
Dante impatiently pulled his drifting thoughts together. Could Caleb be telling him the truth? Did he have too much and not know how to appreciate his good luck? Quickly, he banished the thought. He was grateful for the gifts he had been given especially after the hard time he had getting to this point in his life.
“I’ve thought about the same points you brought up, but I don’t think that’s it,” he admitted.
Looking around the shop, Dante noticed how more people were starting to filter out. He hadn’t realized he had spent so much time at Inked. He still had too much to get done before heading back to work.
“I better head out of here and let you get back to work. I know how much you love answering the phone,” he teased. “I think you need one of those sliver name tags with your name on it so you’ll look more professional. I might need to bring that up to Griffin the next time we talk.”
“Shut up, Dante or I’ll find Bambi and tell her how much you want her back at your side in and out of the restaurant.”
He believed Caleb was teasing him, but he wasn’t about to take any chances because his buddy had a wicked sense of humor and might actually go through with his threat, so it was time for him to hit the road.
“Fine, I’m out of here. Tell Griffin I came by to see him but I’ll call him later. I need to take care of a few more things while I’m still out. Don’t work too hard.”
“Don’t worry, I won’t,” Caleb replied.
Spinning around, Dante headed back towards the front door. He wanted to make a quick trip to the beach and hopefully his favorite taco truck was still there. He had been craving one of them for the past two weeks, but his schedule had been too busy for him to go and get one.
Outside, he got back on his motorcycle and pushed his sunglasses back over his eyes before starting his bike and taking off. He didn’t have much free time on his hands and for the next two hours he was going to enjoy the hell out of what he had.
Chapter Thirteen
Shoving the last bite of the savory taco between her lips, Amara wiped the corner of her mouth then her hands before tossing the tissue into the trashcan. She had been walking around the beach for more than an hour hoping to spot Liam in some of his usual spots, but he wasn’t anywhere to be found. Her concern for him was growing more and deeper with each passing day.
At least thinking about Liam had gotten her mind off Dante. Her memories of the sexy biker were pure and clear, and for that brief moment their eyes had connected she felt something more than fear. She couldn’t forget
a single detail of his handsome face. Sometimes, if she closed her eyes and really focused she still could feel the warm grip of Dante’s hand on her arm. She was beginning to wonder if she had a screw loose or something. She couldn’t stop herself from wondering if Dante would take a second look at her if she wasn’t covered in dirt and old clothing.
Laughing to herself, she shook the idiotic thought from her head. Why was she even going down that road? She needed to stay in the present and not get lost in some fantasy that wasn’t ever going to come to life.
Continuing on down the trail surrounding the beach, Amara allowed herself to get lost in the noise of people playing in the sand. The sounds of their laughter mingled in with the lapping waves of the beautiful clear blue ocean. It was times like this that she almost forgot that she didn’t have a safe place to sleep every night when she went to bed.
A deep, unaccustomed pain gripped its hands around her heart. As her spirits sank even lower at the thought that no matter how hard she tried to get away from this endless torture day after day, this could be the rest of her days. Amara bowed her head, her body slumped in despair as she made her way back towards the park bench where Liam found her the first time they had met each other.
“Amara, wait! Where are you going?” someone yelled behind her.
Surprised to hear her name, Amara turned around smiling when she spotted Theresa coming towards her, but it slowly slid from her face when she spotted Ike walking next to her friend. She couldn’t stop her intense dislike for Theresa’s ‘boyfriend’ as it built up inside of her waiting to boil over. If he said one word out of place to her...
“Hi Theresa, what are you doing here?” she asked, looking at her friend then back over at Ike whose stare drilled into her.
“We were having a fun date at the beach and when I saw you I had to come over here,” Theresa said. “How are things since we last talked? Have you see Liam? I’m worried about him.”
“Who cares about that dirty little low life?” Ike’s harsh voice cut in. “I hope that little bastard is gone. I’m so tired of him getting involved in my business.”
Amara’s temper flared. Of course, Ike didn’t care if Liam was missing or not because he was the only one besides her that called him out on his treatment of Theresa.
She spat out the words. “Why should you care that our friend is missing? Weren’t you the coward who gave him that black eye he was sporting?”
His expression clouded over with anger. “Yes, I hit him and I’ll do it again if I lay eyes on his skinny ass. A boy should know better than to confront a man,” he answered, sharply.
“You bastard,” Amara shouted, stepping towards Ike. “Maybe I should give you some of what you gave to Liam.”
“I know that I didn’t hear you correctly,” Ike said, his ice blue eyes blazing as he took a menacing step towards her. “I warned you before how your mouth is going to get you in all kinds of trouble.”
“Ike, I’m not scared of you unlike Theresa. I know you’re a lot of talk. You aren’t about to do anything to me.”
He glared at her with hard eyes. The look almost made Amara take a step back, but she held her ground. She wasn’t about to let this asshole get the better of her. Ike had to know he couldn’t run over everyone any time he felt like it.
“Theresa, go get me something to eat at one of the vendors parked around here. I want to have a few minutes with your outspoken friend. We need to get some things straight between us.”
Theresa’s eyes caught and held hers before she looked back over at Ike. “I think I should stay here with you,” she answered.
Amara saw how his face grew even darker with anger. He wasn’t going to stand for Theresa questioning him and especially in front of her. She couldn’t let her friend get hurt because of her. Ike was vicious enough to do it without a second thought.
“Go ahead and leave,” she said, looking away from Ike over to her girlfriend. “Nothing is going to happen while you’re gone.”
Her best friend looked at her like she didn’t quite believe it, but she turned around and walked back in the direction she had come from earlier with Ike. Once Theresa was out of ear shot Ike finally spoke to her.
“I like your fire. I mean you would give me more of a fight than my other girls. I know you’re tired of living out here with the other dirty lowlife street people. Why don’t you let me help you?”
Reaching out, Ike ran his finger down the side of her neck then fingered one of her braids. “I can see with a little assist from me you would be a knock out. All you need is some soap, water and someone to take care of your everyday needs.”
“Don’t touch me you bastard,” Amara snapped, slapping his hand away. “Your touch makes my skin crawl and stomach turn. I would rather sleep in a trash can than have anything to do with the likes of you.”
“You little bitch,” Ike growled, wrapping his hand round her wrist. “Do you know who you’re turning down? Girls beg me to make them a part of my escort service. Do you actually think you’re too good for me? I wouldn’t be so damn stuck up. Aren’t you the one eating out of the trash cans? I dine very well every night and sometimes I even allow Theresa to join me.”
Lowering his voice, Ike raked his eyes over her body making her skin crawl. “Just be nice to me and I promise to show you a good time. It’s not as bad as you think. You’ll get used to it after the third or fourth time.”
Her stomach clenched tight at the thought of how Ike would bring her into his ‘business.’ Most of the girls he had working for him couldn’t see past his classically handsome face with his dark blond hair, clear light blue eyes and tailor made suits.
In spite of that, she clearly saw the wolf hiding inside sheep’s clothing and she wasn’t about to freely give her soul and the last of her willpower to someone like him.
No matter how hard things were going for her right now she still had the pride and values her parents raised her with until their deaths. Ike wasn’t about to take all of those precious things away from her.
“I said no,” Amara yelled, struggling against Ike’s iron grip on her arm.
Ike smiled at her, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes. “God, I love the fight in you. Just thinking about breaking your spirit is making my cock hard.”
Jerking her body to him, he held her against his body pushing his erection against her stomach. Amara could barely keep from throwing up as his aftershave burned her nose.
“Let go of me,” she hollered again, hoping someone would help her.
“No,” Ike smirked, staring down into her upturned face. “I like you like this. A little scared, but still willing to stand up and fight with me.”
“I think you should listen to the girl and take your hands off of her. If you can’t, I’ll be more than happy to help you out.”
Amara froze at the sound of the deep, rich masculine voice behind her as it broke into her argument with Ike. His words were as cool and clear as a bucket of ice water; she knew who the owner of it was without even turning around. She wouldn’t ever forget it as long as she lived...it was Dante!
Chapter Fourteen
“Did you hear what I said?” Dante demanded again behind her. “I believe my words were crystal clear.”
Amara wanted to turn around and look at the man who had been haunting her thoughts for the past week, but she couldn’t because Ike’s hand still had an iron grip on her arm. She tried not to flinch as his nails dug into her tender skin.
Dante still scared her, but she knew Ike was a lot worst. All she had to do was get away from this situation and she was done. She couldn’t let Dante get his hands on her either but first things first. She had to get rid of one problem before she could start on another one. Slowly, Ike let go of her arm and stepped to the side putting some space between their bodies.
Not missing a beat, Amara quickly took a step away and spun around. Her eyes widened at the sight of Dante out in the daylight. She thought he was gorgeous that night, when she go
t a glimpse of him during their altercation, but she was wrong.
Everything about him was perfect! Dante towered over Ike by a full eight inches. His well-muscled body enhanced his stance emphasizing how the jeans molded to his hard thighs and the slimness of his hips.
She couldn’t get over the powerful set of his shoulders. Everything about him screamed with a commanding air of self-confidence that Ike would never have in this lifetime or ever, in her opinion.
“Dante Braden, I didn’t know you were friends with the little rag-a-muffin,” Ike taunted, glancing over at her. “How did the two of you become friends?”
“We aren’t friends.” She jumped in before Dante could answer. She didn’t want Ike knowing any more about her life than he should. If he found out about the incident at Dante’s club he would a find way to use it against her.
Dante’s captivating gray-green eyes swung over at her making her breath hitch in her throat as her heart pounded away in her chest. She wanted to say something to him, but all she could do was stand there and stare at him like a girl with her first crush.
“No, we aren’t friends,” he said, slowly glancing away from her over to Ike. “However, I don’t take kindly to a man using his power over a woman. Ike, I know what you do with the girls you help get off the streets. I just think you need to leave the kid alone.”
Amara’s stomach completely dropped to the bottom of her shoes as Ike sneered at Dante. He knew how old she was, but she couldn’t let him tell her secrets. She had to stop Ike before he opened his mouth against her.
“Dante, why are you constantly playing the storybook hero,” Ike snickered. “Why don’t you leave things alone that aren’t any of your damn business? You might have given some of my former sluts a job, but you didn’t get anything over on me. I was done with those used up tramps. However, I’m always looking for a new attraction and I think Amara will be perfect once she gets one of my makeovers.”
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