Unpredictable

by Shantel Tessier

  “You showed up not even bothering to ask what the hell was going on. Just sticking your nose where it didn’t belong. You’re lucky that’s the only thing I broke,” she sneers.

  I take a step toward her. “I did, too. You were too busy fucking shit up…” Tate’s hand comes out, landing on my chest to stop me.

  “Wait a second…” He pauses. He looks back and forth between the two of us. “Is this…? Is this the bitch…?” He stops when her eyes narrow and her nose flares. “The bitch you arrested?” he finishes in a whisper. I told all the guys about my nose accident a few days later when we all went out for drinks. They laughed their asses off.

  “Yep,” I say with a smirk, and she points her finger at me.

  “You had no business being there.”

  “You could have killed him.” Hell, she head butted me. A police officer. His clothes were barely hanging on. Would she have used that bat on him instead of the truck? I wouldn’t put that past her.

  “Please,” she sneers, “that son of a bitch deserved the kick in the nuts. And if given the chance, I would have kicked you in the balls as well.”

  “You little bit…”

  “Stop!” Tate demands. He turns to me. “This is my wedding day. Grow the fuck up and be the better person.” He then turns to her. “Missy is already a nervous wreck. Please. Try to make this day easier for her.”

  She sighs heavily and hangs her head before she gives a soft nod. “Thank you,” he says before he grabs my arm and all but yanks me out of the room.

  “Tate…”

  “I don’t give a fuck,” he growls. “Do you understand that? I don’t care if you hate her. Or if you think she’s crazy. I will show you crazy-ass bitch if this doesn’t go smoothly.”

  And he’s right. Today is his day. Missy has waited all her life for her wedding, so I will be the better friend and not fuck shit up for her. I slap him on the shoulder and give him a smile. “I understand perfectly. Come on, man. You need a drink.” I could use one as well.

  He pulls on the collar of his suit and takes a deep breath. “Yes, another one couldn’t hurt. It’s not like the other three have done anything for me.”

  I laugh as I start to walk him down the hallway. “Just relax.” I saw Missy earlier, and she didn’t seem as stressed as he was. She was smiling and laughing. And she looked absolutely beautiful. Tate’s a lucky guy.

  He stops walking and turns to face me. His always dark blue eyes, the ones that always have that hard look to them, seem to soften as the corner of his mouth starts to turn up at the corners. “She chose me,” he says, and I frown, not quite understanding what he means. Wedding talk is over my head. “Missy chose me out of everyone in the world. She chose to save me. She chose to love me. I never thought that it could feel this good. So amazing. That something so beautiful would love me for all my darkness and scars.” I stand before him wide-eyed and half-dazed. Tate doesn’t open up to others. I don’t care how close of a friend he considers you; he just doesn’t open up about his feelings.

  He looks down at his hands. He fists them and it makes the scars even more noticeable. “But she did and I’m amazed at that every day.” He places his hand on my shoulder and pats it. “And that is also the scariest thing in the world. Do you know how that makes me feel?”

  “Happy?” I’m so confused by what direction he is going with this.

  Tate looks back behind me at something that catches his attention. And I spin around to see Katherine standing there with her bouquet in her hands. She squares her shoulders and gives a smile. The kind of smile that shows off all of her perfect white teeth and makes her look halfway normal for a split second. It’s the fakest smile I’ve ever seen, but I like it. I seem to like everything about her.

  “We gonna get this wedding started or not?” She holds out her right elbow and I walk over to her.

  “Yes, pussy cat,” I say placing my arm through hers and she lets out a long breath. I also like the fact that I irritate her. It can’t be easy for her, though. I remember how crazy she went that day in her front yard, and the fact that she fucked up her own shit. I’m sure having to be around me must embarrass her.

  Tate smiles. “Go get in position.”

  We turn around and I speak softly to her. “Don’t think I didn’t know that smile was fake.” I like playing with her. She’s like a puppet and I can pull her strings. See just how crazy she can get.

  She looks up at me. Her soft brown eyes look into mine. They’re beautiful. They have this gold trim that brings out the dark in the middle. They’re the kind of eyes that men call bedroom eyes. Fuck-me eyes. Don’t mind if I do…

  “Only a faker can spot a fake out in the crowd.” I stop walking and she stops as well. She pulls her arm from mine and steps in front of me. “The difference between you and me is that I don’t care what others think of me. You call me a crazy bitch. But I am what I am. I don’t hide that. You hide behind a badge and your fake smile every day.”

  I step up to her and she bows her chest, pressing her tits against my chest. My cock hardens, and it causes my anger to rise. “Listen, bitch. Don’t think that you know me.”

  “But don’t I?” Her words are dripping with sarcasm. “We know each other so well.” She gives me a soft and cruel smile. Condescending bitch. “Faking it is the easy part.” She reaches up to adjust my tie as if I’m her date and she wants me to be perfect to show off to her friends. “It’s the truth that’s hard to face.”

  My chest is bowed and my breathing is coming quicker. I know all about bitches like these. The ones who hate the world. They all have the same story—fell in love, gave away their virginity to a guy who ended up fucking more women than just them. And all other men must pay for it. Fuck that!

  I take a step to her, thinking she would take a step back, but she doesn’t. She stands strong, pressing against me. “And what exactly is your truth?” I reach up and twirl one of her brown curls around my fingers, trying to make her as uncomfortable as I can. My actions are soft and sweet yet my words wanting to make her second guess them. “Because so far all I’ve seen is a woman who has a problem with authority.” Why does she hate cops so much? Is it just me or in general?

  “Excuse me…?”

  “What? Did your man cheat on you?” Her nostrils flare. “Broke your heart?” I lean down and place my lips by her ear. “Did you not fuck him enough? Men have needs, hunny. Gotta give them what they want or they’ll find it somewhere else.” Her body stands tall and rigid as I pull away from her to look down at her. I give her a cocky smile, letting her know that I can feel the heat of rage radiating from her body.

  “Typical man.” Her eyes drop down to my belt and pants. She places her hands on my chest and I prepare myself for her to shove me out of her way. The last thing I wanna do is land on my ass and get my suit dirty. Tate would kill me. This cat and mouse game has to end eventually, and I have a feeling it’s gonna be me on my ass while she kicks me in the balls. My hands twitch to cover the boys.

  Her eyes slowly make their way back up to mine. I stare at her clenched fists, not knowing what she is gonna do. This woman is like a live grenade; she could blow up in my face at any second. “What are your needs?” she whispers softly before licking her soft pink lips.

  “Huh?” is the only intelligent word I can remember at the moment. Her question, along with her seductive tone, has completely thrown me off. She’s good.

  She presses her hand harder into my chest and she lets out a sigh that has my cock growing. I know the second she feels it because she smiles up at me. My body has that reaction to fucking women, and it sometimes sucks. “Women have needs, too,” she whispers once again. “What if he wasn’t fulfilling mine?”

  I arch an eyebrow when she leaves the question hanging. “Well, sweetheart, what are your needs?”

  “What if I told him that I wanted to do his best friend while he watched?”

  Her eyes drop down to my chest, and she presses her hips furth
er into mine. I fist my hands down by my side to keep from touching her. She’s fucking with me but try to tell that to my cock. “What if my fantasy was a man in uniform?” Her hands fall down to my hips and I grab them, stopping them. I cannot have sex at Tate and Missy’s wedding.

  I know what she’s doing, and it’s working. “Well, here I am, sweetheart. What are you gonna do with me?” I ask, lowering my face down to hers.

  She pulls her left hand from my hold and places it on the side of my face. I flinch and she gives me a warm smile, one that actually looks real, but I know it’s as fake as her tits.

  I go to return it, but her hand moves quickly to my nose. She pinches it and I scream out like a little girl as I take a step back from her and she lets go. She walks away with her head held high and I bend over trying to breathe. “Fuck,” I mumble as a sharp pain runs up and down my spine. Fuck, fuck, fuck. That bitch pinched my nose. Jesus Christ.

  I place my hand on the wall as I bend over holding it. God, it hurts so badly! Trying to settle my heart rate, I take a few deep breaths.

  When I can finally stand up straight, I straighten my suit jacket and take a deep breath. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. That bitch is crazy!

  I make my way down the hall and see all the girls lined up with my best friends. Slade gives me a big smile, but it falls when I don’t return it. He leans down and whispers into Sam’s ear before he leaves her side and walks over to me. “What’s wrong with you?” he asks. “Holly’s cousin here?” He laughs at his own question.

  “No. But the chick who tried to break my nose is,” I hiss. I reach up and softly touch it. “Am I bleeding?”

  His baby blue eyes widen. “What? Where?” He starts to look around the room and I pull on his suit to get him to stop staring.

  “Kat…”

  “Katherine is the one who broke your nose?” he asks trying not laugh. “That’s the crazy bitch you can’t quit talking about?”

  I roll my eyes. “Yes, it’s Katherine. How do you know her?” I ask confused.

  “I’ve met her once before. I went out with Tate to meet Missy and her friend for drinks. It was Katherine.”

  “Fuck,” I hiss.

  “Parker,” Missy warns from the other side of the room. “Watch your mouth. This is a church.” She speaks to me as if I’m a child.

  My eyes fall to Katherine as she covers her mouth to smother a laugh. I narrow my eyes on her. “Well, believe me, I won’t be the only one here to go up in flames for fucking...” Slade places his hands on my chest and pushes me back into a room.

  “You can’t do this now, Parker,” he says trying to reason with me.

  “She is the one with the problem. So what if I arrested her? She was going nuts,” I say defensively.

  “Then who cares?” he asks with a shrug.

  “She cares. She thinks I was in the wrong for doing my job,” I say, pointing a finger at myself. “Then she made me horny…”

  “Parker,” Slade warns. “Do not sleep with her at this wedding.”

  “Geez.” That’s like the fifth person to tell me to keep my dick to myself while at this wedding. “Do you all think I’m just gonna fuck the first pair of tits that I can find today?” Hers did seem quite lovely.

  “Yes,” he says simply and I sigh.

  “Well, I hate to disappoint all of you, but I’m not going to. Not today anyway,” I mumble to myself.

  “Good job.” He pats me on the back. “Come on. The wedding’s gonna start without us.”

  *****

  The actual wedding went pretty well. I could feel the heat of annoyance that ran off Katherine as I walked down the aisle with her, but she sucked it up. And so did I. I don’t know what her problem is. But believe me, I’m going to find out.

  Now I sit at the wedding party table and watch the lovely couple smile at one another as they eat their cake. It’s sickening.

  I can’t get my mind off the beautiful yet bitchy woman sitting next to me. She is having a much easier time ignoring me. But she did admit earlier that she was a good faker. I try to get up the courage to speak to her by taking another drink of my wine. I don’t need the liquid courage to actual speak to her; I need it to keep me calm and not be a dick, which is what I do so well. I really don’t want her to kick me in the balls like she threatened.

  “Would you like to talk about what happened that day?” I ask her politely.

  She looks up from her cake and stares at me as if I have two heads. “Not to you.”

  “Maybe I can help you,” I offer. “I am a police officer,” I remind her as if I wasn’t the one who threw her down in her front yard and handcuffed her. “Does that type of thing happen often with you and your boyfriend?” Maybe they like to fight. Maybe it’s like their foreplay. Believe me, I have seen some crazy shit.

  She places her fork on the white tablecloth and leans over to whisper, “I told you once and I’ll tell you again. Drop it. What happened was none of your business.”

  I reach out to softly rub her arm, and I feel it break out in goosebumps. “Does he hurt you?” I ask looking deep into her eyes. I’m being a total ass, and she knows it.

  She jerks her arm away from me. “I had just gotten home that morning and was in a bad fucking mood,” she growls.

  Just gotten home? It was like seven in the morning. “What in the hell were you doing just getting home?” I demand. “Especially the way you were dressed.” I smile as I let my dickness shine through. “Been out hooking all night? And your man got tired of having to share you?” The memory of her telling me that she wanted to fuck her man’s best friend is still fresh in my mind. And what a thought that is.

  I hear Samantha gasp as I watch Katherine’s eyes narrow at me. She reaches over to the table, and the next thing I know, she’s shoving her cake into my face. “Vas te faire encule salaud,” she hisses in my ear before I feel a cold liquid land in my lap. I can literally hear my cock sizzle as if she just put out a fire. Holy fuck, did she cuss at me in French? I think I just came.

  I wipe the expensive icing and cream filled cake out of my eyes in time to see her walk briskly across the dance floor followed by Samantha. “Dude. That was awesome,” Slade says sitting next to me. He tries to contain his laughter but fails. “Not the part where you called her a hooker but where she slammed a piece of cake in your face and then she poured her wine in your lap. And what did she say to you? It didn’t even sound like she was speaking English,” he says through laughter.

  “She wasn’t.” God, it sounded so fucking sexy. I can only imagine what dirty talk would sound like in bed with her speaking to me in French.

  I look over at him with narrowed eyes as he laughs louder. “Can you imagine if you marry her?” He slams his hand over his mouth trying to quiet his laughter. “I mean, come on, I will have some great stories to tell for my best man’s speech.”

  “Why in the fuck would you even think that way? Marriage?” Really? Does he even know who he’s talking to? Maybe he’s had too many glasses of wine tonight.

  “Parker, man. You’re gonna have to marry a woman like that because that’s the only kind who will be able to put up with your ass.”

  “She hates me.” And I wanna fuck her.

  He shrugs as his laughter starts to calm. “I hated you when I first met you, too. You’ll grow on her.”

  “We were just kids,” I say wondering how he could have hated me back in high school.

  “You were still a dick back then.” He laughs as he sits back in his seat and lifts his wine glass to his lips.

  I look over the table and see Missy storming toward me with her hands on her hips. Tate isn’t far behind her. I wipe off another piece of cake from my face and suck it off my finger. “Parker Anthony O’Hare,” she growls coming at me like a bull charging the red cape.

  “Great cake,” I say smiling. “Do you ever wonder where that saying you can’t have your cake and eat it too came from?” I ask, truly curious. “I mean I sta
ck icing on the shit and then add sprinkles before I eat it.” Tate chuckles and Missy turns around to look at him and he shuts his mouth.

  “What the hell did you do?” she demands coming to a stop in front of us. She narrows her eyes on Slade when he starts laughing again.

  “I’m so sorry…”

  “I did nothing,” I say interrupting him. It’s hard to apologize when you’re laughing your ass off.

  “Really?” she snaps. “She just threw cake in your face because she felt like it?”

  I stand from the table and lean over it. “She threw cake in my face because she’s a fucking bitch.”

  “Parker!” Tate warns.

  “What?” I bark getting tired of this chick already. “She was the one who didn’t like what I had to say.”

  “Then quit running your mouth,” she snaps.

  I run a hand over my face. Is this be bitchy to Parker day? I would say more to Missy, but it’s not her fault she has the devil for a friend. “You’re right.” I swallow. “I’m sorry.” I go to sit down, but she stops me.

  “Don’t apologize to me. Apologize to Katherine.”

  I start shaking my head quickly. “Parker. I am not asking you. I’m telling you to swallow whatever pride you have and say you’re fucking sorry,” she growls. I’ve never seen her so mad before. We all know her as the calm and quiet one of the group. I think Tate is corrupting her.

  “Fine,” I growl.

  Like a light switch flipped on, she puts a big smile on her face and stands up straight. “Thank you.” She looks over at Slade, and he lifts his glass of wine in salute and nods to her with a smart-ass grin on his face. “Let’s go; my father wants to talk to you,” she says, grabbing Tate’s hand, and walks off.

  “Thought she was the nice one?” Slade leans over and whispers to me.

  I sigh as I sit back into my seat. “Me, too,” I say scraping more cake off my face. “Me, too…” I repeat as I think about Katherine. I can’t get a read on her. What is she thinking? What makes her act like such a fucking bitch? I understand why she hates me so much. I arrested her. But that is my job. What if I hadn’t shown up? She was obviously winning the fight between them, but what if he had really got a hand on her? He could have hurt her. Killed her. I see those kind of events every day of my life.