CUL-DE-SAC (On The Edge Book 1)

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CUL-DE-SAC (On The Edge Book 1) Page 33

by YILDIRIM, M. E.


  He was temperamental and used to having his way, focused on getting what he wanted and she couldn’t not admire that, not admire him, knowing it was something Xan wouldn’t understand either.

  Her lips twitched when she thought he was all bark and no bite. Oh, there was no doubt he was an aggressive and dangerous man and it was ill-advised to cross him, but there was also the other side of the coin, the side she loved to divulge when he dropped his guard.

  That was what she considered winning, Cat decided, even though there was no fight.

  She gazed up at the male in front of her, so at odds with the one her heart belonged to now. Timothy was a surgeon and from what she understood, a promising one at that, with a bright future ahead of him. The type of man she should feel comfortable with, having so much in common.

  That was another problem, she admitted; she didn’t want comfort, having learned she had a natural inclination toward exciting and dangerous instead. She would have been better off if she could deny it, she thought, but easy ways had never held a particular appeal to her.

  While Timothy had been nothing but solicitous, eager to please her and had been hanging on her every word, she was not really able to enjoy his company, focusing on her unpredictable man instead.

  As a result she was more than happy the meeting was not of a romantic nature, because as much as she was forced to endure countless similar ones in the past, they would undoubtedly send her running for the hills now.

  She glanced at her watch discreetly, deciding it was time to bring up the real reason she came here for. Cat wanted to learn what kind of a project he was interested in so they could decide whether they were going to cooperate, and then be on their merry way.

  “Would you like to see pictures now?” She asked and he blinked, as if taken aback by her question.

  “Ah, Florence mentioned you like to play with your camera.” He smiled pleasantly and Catalina tried not to show how she felt about this belittling description.

  “Lucky for me, some people actually pay for my little hobby.” Oops… okay, maybe she did let him know what she thought about it after all.

  “I apologize if I offended you; I had no idea your interest reached deeper,” Timothy said.

  “No, I am the one who is sorry, but I have to admit I am confused: why would you want to meet with me otherwise?” Cat decided that adopting Xan’s straightforwardness would work the best in this situation.

  “Well, your grandmother thought we had a lot in common and that it was a good idea if we met. Why do I get the feeling you were ambushed?” He looked at her with a somber expression on his face.

  “I’m very sorry, Timothy, but it seems it was a misunderstanding. I thought I was meeting someone interested in my work; why would I bring my portfolio with me otherwise?” She asked rhetorically.

  “I’ve been wondering about that myself. No, Catalina, I am interested in you and not your work. I’m… sorry?” He hesitated.

  “I am involved with someone,” she informed him shortly. “I am sorry I’ve wasted your time.” She got up. “I wish you the best, Timothy. Goodbye.”

  Her head was spinning from all those sorry’s as she made her way through the crowded restaurant to the exit.

  Anger was a vibrant, living thing within her because Timothy was right; she had been ambushed.

  How stupid she was, how naive thinking that for once Florence had taken her photography seriously and as something more than a leisure pursuit. It was yet another betrayal, not any less than Chloé’s, only of a different nature. Its strength was enough to fray the edges of the temper she was unaware of having. How little did people think of her, since they felt free to walk all over her? Cat wondered.

  She kept pondering it the whole drive to the gym, and evidently her inner turmoil did bleed to the outside this time because Kelton took one look at her and raised an eyebrow.

  She berated herself inwardly for not taking more care in hiding her feelings–these kinds of slip-ups were happening more and more often. However, it was getting increasingly harder to maintain all the pretenses, since the new reality she was living in didn’t care much for hypocrisy.

  “Are you okay, Catalina?”

  A loaded question if she ever heard one, she thought.

  “Did I miss the whole training?” She asked instead.

  “Yeah, Xan is in the shower. Why don’t you grab a bottle of water and tell me who needs to have my size eleven shoe stamped on their ass?”

  She nearly choked hearing the question and then laughed out loud.

  “Thank you, I needed that.” She walked closer and kissed him on the cheek.

  “And I definitely needed that.” He grinned at her.

  “What I need is to kill Kelton now; good going, Kitten.” Xan smirked, emerging from the locker room.

  He was already fully clothed, but water droplets were still shining in his hair. He smiled lazily at her and withholding her love declaration started to feel like the hardest thing to do.

  Cat realized she wouldn’t have had to, if only they had been alone at the moment.

  “What am I going to get, if his sorry ass landed with a smooch on the cheek?” Xan demanded.

  “Why don’t you come here and learn?” She shot him a haughty look and it hit him like a jolt of a challenge, just as her words did.

  A challenge he couldn’t wait to oblige.

  He stalked her with seemingly slow and prowling steps, not taking his eyes off of her, but she knew he could spring to action at any given moment. He had no idea she had zero intention of running away, Cat thought and smiled brighter, which only made him narrow his eyes.

  “Well?” Xan raised an eyebrow expectantly stopping before her.

  Catalina rose on her toes wrapping her arms around his neck and laid her lips on his arrogant mouth. For once he let her set a leisurely pace without trying to take control.

  “Hi,” she managed to say, ending the kiss.

  “Hey, Kitten, how did your meeting go?” Xan asked raising his hand to toy with the ends of her hair.

  “Not worth mentioning.” Trying to keep up the smile cost her a bit, but she saw no reason for getting into the whole setup and drama that would follow. “How about your training?”

  “I’ve worked up quite an appetite.” He gave her a wicked look that instantly brought forth the memory of his insatiable hunger after the first sparring session she had ever witnessed.

  The sound of Kel clearing his throat disrupted the ever growing sexual awareness between them and Cat flinched, realizing she had forgotten about the other man’s presence.

  “Let’s get out of here and I will tell you in great detail about the plans we have for tonight.” Xan offered with a nefarious gleam in his eye.

  “Alex!” Cat slapped his chest and Kelton laughed.

  “Whaa? I don’t know what kind of warped thoughts you two have, but I meant street racing.” His smile was too innocent for Catalina’s peace of mind.

  “Give Dante my regards,” Kel said. “It’s been a while since I saw that smooth operator.”

  “Will do,” Xan chuckled at the description.

  “Who is Dante?” Cat wanted to know.

  “I think it’s best to leave it for you to decide,” Xan grinned.

  CHAPTER 43

  All Catalina knew about street racing was that it was yet another unsanctioned activity with a much harsher punishment than underground fighting was.

  It made perfect sense to her because she imagined people behind those finely-tuned and tweaked-to-perfection vehicles as desperados who had nothing to lose.

  Was there anything more dangerous than people who were dauntless in a reckless way, heedless of consequences their actions could bring not only onto them but onto innocent bystanders as well?

  Xan told her that motor racing could be either spontaneous or well-planned and coordinated. The one that was supposed to unravel in front of their eyes tonight definitely belonged to the latter because that was where
stakes were really high.

  After Tristan’s game, she had a pretty good idea how high the high could really get and it still felt mind-boggling to her.

  Catalina couldn’t understand what pushed people to sit behind a car wheel and drive as if there was no tomorrow, but she assumed everyone had their own reasons.

  Whether those reasons could justify the immensity of undertaken risks was another matter altogether.

  She smothered the need to yawn, thinking that her internal clock had some catching up to do if she wanted to keep up with Xan’s lifestyle. She glanced at the dashboard after taking a seat in his car, noticing it was well past one a.m.

  “One word and we won’t go if you are too tired,” Xan said.

  “I’m fine and very curious. When would I get another chance to see something like that?” She asked and saw his lips twitching.

  “I created a monster,” he groaned. “What will happen when I will run out of illegal and dangerous activities I can take you to?” He wanted to know.

  “You will need to find another way to entertain me.” She smiled sweetly at him.

  “Keep pushing sweetheart… should I remind you what happened the last time you did that?” His hand landed on her thigh and even the material of her jeans couldn’t stop the heat of his touch from soaking through.

  It was the second reference today to the one and only time she got to visit his apartment, where he took her against the door as soon as they stepped through the threshold.

  Cat shivered at the sensory memory.

  “I’m not afraid of you.” She looked him straight in the eye.

  “Tell me this again when I have you pinned to the bed, slick and writhing in need under me,” he murmured and a breath locked in her throat when the image slammed into her mind with all the suggestiveness he intended it to.

  “Bastard,” Cat said and he laughed, not taking an offence.

  On the contrary, he considered it a win when he saw a flush covering the alabaster skin of her cheeks, knowing how rarely she used any kind of insults.

  “Tell me about Dante,” she demanded after a moment passed and the arousal in her blood dropped a notch, becoming a bearable simmer.

  “Dante Savarin. Everybody involved in the street scene knows his name; he is usually the initiator of those races and… the winner as well.”

  “So he is basically you, just in a different setting,” Cat summed up.

  “Ah, Kitten, you are flattering me,” Xan chuckled.

  “That was not my intention; let’s move on.” She hissed out a breath when he brought her hand to his lips and nibbled on her knuckles. “So how did you meet?”

  “There is not much I could be grateful to my father for, but hot-wiring a car is one of those things. While it surely is not a good trait, it helped me to survive that crucial time I was living on the streets and selling cars to chop shops. Dante was already neck deep in racing, but he had no money to pursue his passion,” Xan said.

  “Basically he was stealing cars to pay for his ‘in’ into racing cars, right?”

  “Basically I was doing the same, I just had a different purpose.”

  “I don’t judge. I’m trying to picture it,” she explained.

  “And yet I hear a note of censure in your tone,” he noticed.

  “I’m sorry, I just think there is a difference between a man who did what he had to in order to survive while another used illegal means to be able to get involved in something even more illegal and lethal,” she argued.

  “We are not so different, Dante and me, Catalina. He has his reasons and I have mine. His story is not mine to tell. People die in the ring as well, not only in car accidents.” Xan’s hands clenched on the steering wheel.

  “Did you ever try your chances in a race like that?” She wanted to know.

  “Once or twice, but it wasn’t my thing.” He shrugged.

  “You fight, Tristan gambles and Dante is racing cars. Okay, I got the picture.” She smiled at him and he chuckled. “You are all adrenaline junkies.”

  “Yeah, that’s us, you got our number.” He smirked.

  “Xan, the road is closed,” Catalina said when the lights of his car swept the street before them.

  “That’s the point, Kitten.” He chuckled.

  “Oh.” Understanding dawned and she thought that the barricade made of barrels with tape would have fooled her.

  Xan drove into the avenue ignoring the warnings and soon after Cat saw there were plenty of other cars gathered in one place. People were pouring out of them and into the night, as if summoned by some great invisible power.

  “I can’t believe I was as oblivious to all those illegal activities not so long ago myself,” she muttered, shaking her head.

  “There is no going back, Cat,” Xan said and she looked at him because there was a note in his voice she didn’t recognize or understand.

  “No, there is not.” She leaned in to kiss him on the cheek. “Lead the way.”

  “And here comes Dante,” he informed her, pointing in the direction of a sleek car screeching up to the curb.

  “Wow,” was all she said when she saw the vehicle looking like a silver bullet penetrating the darkness.

  “It’s an Audi R8 GT, his pride and joy,” Xan explained.

  “I can see why,” she agreed.

  “It’s not how this baby looks; it’s what it can make. It goes from zero to sixty in three and a half seconds, it takes a hundred and two feet to bring it from sixty to zero.” There was pure awe in his voice.

  To Catalina’s ears, the roaring of the powerful engine sounded like the rumble of some untamed big cat in search of its next prey. Her jaw nearly dropped open when a man stepped out of the car, and not because he seemed like a natural extension of the machine.

  No, he was simply the most beautiful male she had ever seen.

  “Wow,” she repeated, feeling silly but she simply couldn’t stop herself.

  “Yeah, that is the usual reaction he gets wherever he goes,” Xan chuckled. “Am I going to regret introducing you to him?” He teased and she rolled her eyes at him instead of giving an actual answer.

  “Yo, D!” Xan called out, trying to get through the crowd gathered around Dante and his car, wondering which was getting more attention.

  “Xan!” Dante flashed him a smile and while they were busy exchanging a hand shake, Cat decided that up close and personal, he was even more impressive.

  The man was as tall as Xan and was of a similar athletic build. His black-as-night hair flowed in the light breeze, touching the collar of his long leather coat. His skin was a beautiful darker shade, speaking of Italian ancestors as his name suggested. His cheekbones were high and proud, his jaw had a similar rigid line as Xan’s did and she sighed thinking he must be as stubborn as her warrior was.

  “This is Catalina,” Xan introduced her, and when the man looked at her she saw his eyes were strikingly blue.

  “A beautiful name for a beautiful woman,” Dante murmured and she understood why Kel would call him a smooth operator.

  “Babe, you are staring,” Xan noticed, and she felt a hot flush spreading over her cheeks.

  Dante, she noticed, didn’t seem fazed or disturbed by that fact and she suspected he wasn’t the type to complain about lack of female company.

  “That’s because I am used to racers who are rather short and slim and their main muscles are in the neck.”

  “Ah, you are talking about Formula 1 drivers, and that is something entirely different,” Dante explained. “Do you know what is happening here tonight Catalina?”

  “Well… I think the event is categorized as ‘Cannonball Runs’, although more commonly it is recognized as ‘Sprints’–an illegal point-to-point rally–involving a handful or racers. Whoever makes the fastest overall time is going to be proclaimed the winner?”

  “Almost to the letter, except there are going to be two racers alone. Not bad; I can see what Tristan meant.” He looked at Xan.

>   “Hello? I can still hear you, you know,” she pointed out politely, and his lips twitched while Xan’s arm snaked around her.

  Before she could react, Dante’s hand snapped up and he touched the camera she had slung across her arm. His gaze swung to Xan.

  “What gives, man?”

  “It’s okay, D, I promise,” Xan said.

  There was a short pause when they were measuring each other and she wondered if she was going to be a reason for an argument between two friends. Cat opened up her mouth to say she would leave her Canon in the car if that would ease the tension filled with testosterone, when Dante shrugged finally as if it didn’t matter.

  “Take it… just in case.” He pulled out a small device out of his leather coat pocket and Cat saw it was a Bluetooth earbud.

  “It was pleasure, Catalina; I want to see the pictures.” He winked at her and fist-bumped Xan. “Hit me up later, Xan.”

  “Good luck,” Cat said and he flashed another smile at her.

  “No other kind,” he said, and slid into the vehicle taking a seat.

  “That’s his opponent, Malachi Cato,” Xan said when Dante maneuvered his car to what seemed to be the start line.

  “How do you know?” She asked.

  “Just because I don’t play the game doesn’t mean I don’t know the players.” He shrugged putting the earpiece in his right ear.

  “What’s that for?”

  “We will be notified instantly in case the police is going to come sniffing around the area.”

  “It really is well organized, huh?” Mind-boggling, she thought again.

  “Dante spends usually around two–three days on preparations, but the word about the location goes off at the last moment. Okay, here goes.”

  The engines of two powerful machines were revving and when a girl in a skimpy dress that stood between the racers dropped her arms, they took off down the street.

  Cat’s heart jumped up and landed in her throat and the knuckles of her hand turned white when she instinctively squeezed Xan’s hand.

 

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