Loving the Enemy (Seven Forbidden Arts Book 0)

by Charmaine Pauls

  She couldn’t watch this any longer. She pushed back her chair, but a waiter appeared at her table.

  “Would you like a drink, ma’am?”

  Jacob hitting on some bimbo shouldn’t have any effect on her. Yet, anger and hurt surged through her. She wanted to lash out at Jacob, and crawl into a hole and hide at the same time. Her dad had never allowed her to have anything other than a glass of wine with dinner, but now was probably a good time to start enjoying her new freedom. The only thing she could think of, was the drink her friend, Clara, said she ordered at the nightclubs where Lily was prohibited to go.

  “Barb Wire Cola, please.”

  The waiter nodded and left. Lily turned her attention back to Jacob, and then was sorry that she had. His hands were in the blonde’s hair, his fingers entangled in the tresses, and even if she couldn’t see his face, she knew he was kissing her in a way that made the woman’s knees weak, because she was leaning into him, barely keeping her balance. Only when the barman placed a beer and a fizzy drink in front of them, did Jacob pull away. His laugh reached Lily across the room. She watched in horror as his pick-up balanced herself on his lap. One arm went around her back, and his big hand rested high up on her thigh, precariously close to her panty line. Still he acted as if Lily didn’t exist.

  A tall drink was placed in front of her. Lily barely acknowledged the waiter before tipping back the glass and downing half of it in one go. As the bitter bite of the alcohol registered on her taste buds, she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and grimaced. There was nothing appetizing about mampoer and Coca Cola.

  Jacob lifted his hand from his conquest’s leg to pick up her glass and bring it to her lips. She bit the straw with a seductive expression before wrapping her tongue around it. The barman handed her a handheld credit card machine, and while she popped a card she took from a clutch bag into the slot, Jacob’s free hand slipped between her legs. Lily nearly spat the swallow of disgusting liquid she had taken across her table. The woman’s head fell back and her lips parted. Then she gave Jacob a tap on the nose, and turned her attention back to the task at hand, assumingly paying for their drinks.

  In the next ten minutes Lily was forced to witness the spectacle, she downed her drink, the effect of it starting to register in her body and mind. Her muscles turned to jelly. She started seeing double and her nose went numb. A moment of panic set in when Lily realized she wasn’t in control. She gripped the edge of the table as the room seemed to tilt. She didn’t like the feeling at all. She had an overpowering urge to breathe in the cold air outside, and not to see how hard Jacob was coming on to his target. She got to her feet and clutched the chair back not to stumble. She took two steps, but instead of moving forward, she went sideways, colliding hard with something. A pair of hands gripped her shoulders.

  “Oops.” Lily looked up and stared into the face of a dark-haired man. “Sorry.” She tried to move away.

  Tightening his hold, he shifted the drink he clutched in one hand to get a better grasp. “No need to apologize. My good fortune.”

  Lily swayed.

  He laughed. “Easy now.” His arm went around her. “Do you want to get some air?”

  “Yes,” she breathed.

  “What’s your name, pretty lady?”

  She wasn’t supposed to trust anyone. “Doesn’t matter.” Oh no, now her tongue was slurring.

  The man raised an eyebrow. “If that’s the way you want to play it…”

  “Excuse me,” the waiter said next to them, “are you leaving, ma’am?”

  “Yes, she is,” the man replied on her behalf.

  “You haven’t paid for your drink, ma’am.”

  “Put it on my tab,” he said.

  They had taken one step toward the door when Lily was jerked from the man’s arms. She stumbled, but another pair of hands steadied her.

  “What the–” The action had caused the man to spill his drink down the front of his suit.

  Jacob looked down at the man, his face like thunder. “Get the fuck away from my girlfriend.”

  “Whoa.” The man lifted his hands. “What? She came onto me, not the other way around.”

  “Like hell she did.” Jacob’s nostrils flared. “You’re a sad excuse of a man, taking advantage of tipsy girls.”

  The man brushed off his wet jacket. “If she was my girl, I’d keep a better watch on her. You’re a sad excuse for a fucking boyfriend.” He turned to Lily. “And just for the record, peachy lips, your boyfriend was practically fingering the blonde at the bar. I’d think long and hard about my choices in boyfriends, if I were you.” He banged down his glass on the nearest table and stalked away.

  A bouncer in a black suit appeared at their side. “Is there a problem?”

  “No,” Jacob said through gritted teeth, “we were just leaving.”

  He dragged Lily behind him from the building. When the cold air hit her, the dizziness became worse. She battled to keep up with Jacob. He stopped at a cash dispenser, inserted a card, and a few seconds later bills poured through the slot. They doubled and tripled in Lily’s vision. She had to lean on Jacob to stay steady. He dumped the card in the garbage bin next to the machine and hailed a taxi.

  Thirty minutes later, Lily was sitting on the edge of a double bed in a cheap hotel.

  Jacob hovered over her, holding out a bottle of water. “Drink that.”

  She wasn’t thirsty so she shook her head.

  “Drink.” There was a tight tone to his voice.

  Lily took a few sips, but the water was too cold. It hurt her teeth.

  “All of it,” Jacob said, sounding relentless.

  It took a while to get all of it in, and when she had, she desperately needed the bathroom. She got up on wobbly legs. Immediately Jacob’s arms went around her. He guided her to the adjoining room and started unbuttoning her pants.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Helping.”

  When it was done, he left her to her privacy. Lily splashed cold water on her face. She was staring at her pale features when a knock sounded on the door. A second later, Jacob entered.

  “Why didn’t you answer?” he said. “You made me worry.”

  “Shit.” She pushed past him, feeling her way along the wall back to the bed and lay down. The ceiling spun in a disconcerting way.

  This time Jacob only watched her with his arms crossed, his expression softening. “Another first?” he said after a while.

  “Uh-huh.”

  A faint smile tugged at his lips. “What did you drink?”

  She rested the back of her hand on her forehead. “Barb Wire and Coke.”

  “What?” He stared at her in disbelief. “Of all the first drinks you could have, you ordered Barb Wire?”

  “That’s what my friend says she always orders. What was I supposed to get?”

  “You could have started with something gentler, like a spritzer. A Barb Cola is fifty percent alcohol, sweetheart.”

  She groaned. “It feels horrible, like I don’t have control.” She turned her head toward him. “You stole that woman’s money, didn’t you?”

  A flicker of a shadow crossed over his face. “I didn’t want you to see that. If I had a choice, I wouldn’t let you watch. But I couldn’t leave you on your own. It’s too dangerous. You understand that, don’t you?”

  “Kissing her, was it nice?” she said in a small voice.

  He sat down next to her and gripped her chin. “Listen to me, Lily. You do what you have to do to survive. You don’t ponder on it, you don’t analyze it, and you don’t regret it.”

  Tears built in her eyes. “I didn’t like it when you touched her. It made me feel angry. That’s why I downed the drink.”

  “God, Lily.” He pulled her up and hugged her close. “You’re too honest for your own good.”

  His arms felt good around her. Her body responded to him instantly, doing things she couldn’t begin to understand, expect that it was exhilarating. Her breasts felt
tight, and the sensitive spot between her legs started aching. She wanted to know what the woman had felt when Jacob had his mouth on hers, his fingers between her legs.

  She twisted her body so she could wiggle onto his lap. “Kiss me like that. Touch me the same.”

  Jacob stilled, even if his erection grew rock-hard under her. The length of his cock pressed between her buttocks, and when she shifted, he inhaled sharply.

  “You’re too young and innocent to ask me that, Lily,” he said, lifting her gently from his lap. He got up abruptly. “This is your first time drunk. We need to do it properly.”

  She looked up at him in confusion. “What do you mean?”

  “Come here.” He pulled her to her feet and drew his fingers through her hair. The soft tugs he gave to work through the knots intensified the pulse between her legs, making her feel hot and wet.

  “There,” he said, taking a step back to inspect his work. “You’re perfect.”

  “For what?”

  “For celebrating your first drink.”

  “Where are we going?” she said as Jacob took her hand and led her to the door.

  “Clubbing.”

  “Really?” She paused. “Is it safe?”

  “Don’t you want to?”

  “More than anything. Daddy would never let me. But what if–”

  He pressed his fingers to her lips. “You’ve got to always remember how to live. Especially when you’re on the run. Otherwise, we give up too easily.”

  What could he know about being on the run? He didn’t give her a chance to question him. He pushed her through the door, into the last light of the day, and into a different world.

  Never in his life would he have pictured himself in this situation–him spending the night with his drunken target in a sleazy salsa club. It was another uncalculated risk, one he shouldn’t be taking, but what was he supposed to do? The first time he got drunk his buddies left him out cold next to the quarry. He woke up alone, disorientated, sick and with a blank memory. There was nothing glorified about it–no feeling of fraternity, no join-the-club slap on the back, not even a fucking ride home. It was a goddamn horrible experience. He wasn’t going to do that to Lily. Especially not since it was his fault she got smashed in the first place.

  He took a step back to look at Lily and leaned against the bar counter, making sure she was within arm’s reach. He enjoyed dancing, but he enjoyed watching her more. She was really letting loose. His eyes trailed down her body and settled on the tight ass she was shaking with abandon. No wonder her dad had kept her locked up in her brick castle. It wasn’t right, to withhold her from life, but he couldn’t blame the man. If she were his to protect, he’d probably do the same. She was as hot as hell. Even hotter when she looked at him and he could see the way her heart started beating faster from the way the delicate vein throbbed in her neck while a flush marked her skin. He hadn’t expected her honesty about her reaction. Most girls her age were playing hard to get. Lily just didn’t have a clue. If she had, she wouldn’t have asked him to touch her. It was refreshing, but dangerous. He was only a man, after all. And not a good one, at that.

  Kissing the blonde like he meant it had been unpleasant, especially with Lily watching. It was the fastest, cleanest way to get his hands on a stash of cash, and even if Lily’s eyes were like spears in his chest, he did what he had to do. He nearly ripped the asshole apart who pounced on Lily, taking her for easy prey. To get rid of the blonde fast, he had to be a dick, telling her to go fix her lipstick in the bathroom.

  Jacob took a swig from his beer. His palms turned slick as the Latino guys on the floor threw glances in Lily’s direction. He should have taken her someplace fancier, but he liked the bar. It was less pretentious. He left his beer on the counter and placed his hands on Lily’s hips, pulling her toward him. A pointed stare at the Latino corner told the guys that this was his territory. Taken.

  She laughed and swung her hips in his grip. “Come on, Jacob,” she said above the music, “dance with me.”

  Her hipbones were delicate. They would crunch under a strong hand. He stroked his palms up to her waist. His fingers overlapped by far. He wanted to know what it would feel like to move his hand higher, to flatten his palm over the soft curve of her breast, and wrap it around her neck, just to be reminded of how fragile she was, of how easy she’d break. An unfounded possessiveness made him want to believe that she was his to protect. He had never been responsible for anything as frail as Lily. His life was hard-cut, made up of violence and paid wars. Fighting, he understood. Not virgin girls who looked liked they’d be safer wrapped up in cotton wool.

  Lily threw her hair back. The black tresses reached her waist, tickling his fingers. He realized he was still gripping her warm skin, his hands half under the hem of her T-shirt. Either she was too drunk to notice, or too busy dancing to care, because he saw none of the symptoms of arousal he had seen in the superstore or motel. In a selfish instant he wanted her to be wet for him, to grow hot imagining what he could do to her, but then he shook his head with self-disgust. His dick had no place in this mission, even if it grew hard every time he looked at her. And it was hard tearing his gaze away from those baby blue eyes. Too young, he reminded himself. Too innocent.

  The only way to break the spell was for him to step around her, away from those eyes and perfect bouncing tits. Jacob pulled her back to his chest and started dancing with renewed resolution. Only, this time his cock pressed against her spine. Son of a bitch. This night was killing him. Lily tilted her head to smile up at him. For her sake, he plastered a carefree expression on his face, and when the slow salsa started, he gripped her narrow hips and rocked her to his beat. From this angle he could see down the front of her V-neck T-shirt. Holy shit. She wasn’t wearing underwear. It hit him like a punch in the gut that he didn’t get her any at the shop. He just assumed she had taken some from the house he had broken into. Then again, it probably wasn’t something someone like Lily would’ve done–wearing secondhand underwear. That meant her pussy was bare under those jeans, the seam sliding up and down her slick folds. He groaned. This was torture of the worst kind.

  He bent down and inhaled the fragrance of her hair. She smelled like a mixture of lavender and smoke from the club. Delicious. “Ready to go?”

  She spun around and pouted. “This is my first night out. My first night in a club.”

  “The sun will be up in an hour, sweetheart.”

  “Okay. We’ll go when the sun is up.”

  She had a pretty flush on her cheeks and the tips of her naked breasts were pebbling her T-shirt. There was only one way to survive another hour of this. Jacob grabbed her hands and pulled her into a twirl.

  “We better dance, then,” he said.

  Her happy giggle made up for his apprehension. What was he doing? He only had to keep his eye on the ball. Focus on the mission. Easy.

  Chapter Four

  ‡

  Lily’s body was sticky. Her muscles were aching. But she was happy. She sat across Jacob in the booth of a twenty-four hour diner, a full breakfast in front of them both. The vigorous dancing had helped to lessen the alcohol-induced cobwebs, clearing her body and mind as the night moved along. They hadn’t stopped until sunrise, when the club had closed. Jacob was a skilled dancer and had taught her some moves. With him she felt safe, able to let go for the first time in her life, and she did. He bought her one more drink, but only hours later, and it was a cocktail with a minimal amount of booze. In between he fed her copious amounts of water and guarded her when she needed to use the bathroom.

  “This was the best night of my life,” she said, unable to keep the happy tone from her voice. “Thank you for not letting it end with a spinning ceiling in a cheap hotel room.”

  He grinned. “You deserved nothing less.” He motioned at her food. “Now, eat up. And next time, don’t drink without eating first. The alcohol goes to your head faster on an empty stomach. Have pasta, and cheese. Carbohydrates and fat a
re always good for drinking.”

  “I’ll remember.” She smiled at him and bit into her toast.

  His hand stilled on his cup. “And don’t smile at men the way you smile at me now.”

  “How am I smiling at you?”

  “All goofy-eyed.”

  “How am I supposed to smile?”

  His expression turned serious. “In no way that will lead them on. And never, ever do what you did back at the W. That was a dangerous move. That guy was going to take advantage of you, Lily.”

  She glanced down. “Don’t spoil my moment.”

  “You’re right. I shouldn’t piss on your parade. But you don’t know men like I do. Just promise me you won’t do that again.”

  “I won’t. Happy now?”

  He leaned back and smiled. “Yeah. Much happier.”

  “So no more parade pissing.”

  “I’m a bad influence on you. One day with me and you’re already cussing and drinking.” He said it jokingly, but his eyes held a serious expression. “I’m not a good teacher for young, innocent virgins.”

  “Any more rules?” She lifted an eyebrow.

  “Nothing else.” His gaze darkened. “Just … keeping alive.”

  Lily put down her fork. “Jacob, you don’t have to come with me. You got me this far, but I can make it on my own.”

  “I’m not leaving you, Lily. Already told you, I’ve got nowhere else to be.”

  If he noticed her disappointment at that statement, he didn’t show it. She wished he had told her that he was there because he wanted to be, as much as she wanted him to stay. Despite the dire situation, her spirit lifted considerably as she suddenly had a thought. It was a long way to Europe.

  After breakfast Lily tidied up in the bathroom, and then Jacob took her to a photo booth where he inserted a coin for a passport size photo.

  He adjusted the stool to her height and seated her. “Look straight ahead and don’t smile,” he said before dropping the black curtain.

  “Why aren’t we taking them together, making funny faces?” Lily called through the partition.