Crossing the Line

by Lauren Landish

  We stay together, his cock still semi-hard inside me as he turns to the side, pulling me on top of him. I love the feeling, being able to look down on him as I realize that, for the first time, I’ve really felt Rafe let himself go. Even before, he was always holding himself back, always making sure I could stay with him. Not any longer, and I love him all the more for it. “A new woman was born today,” I whisper to him softly. “And it’s because of you.”

  “So who are you now?” he asks as he strokes my hair. He doesn’t sound confused. He knows what I’m trying to say.

  I smile, propping my forearms on his strong chest and feeling a piece of paper shift under my left knee, making me chuckle. “I’m more than the Shawnie Holliday you met. I’m the woman you mentored, the lover you showed untold pleasure to, the submissive slave who will serve you for the rest of my life if you’ll have me. I’m the geeky engineer and the sexual adventurer who wants to be pounded by you every chance I can. I’m all of that, wrapped up in one. I’m not superior like you, but you make me feel like I am.”

  Chapter 25

  Rafe

  Looking at Shawnie straddling my hips, her pussy lightly squeezing my cock and starting to rise again toward another orgasm, I can’t believe just how lucky I’ve gotten. In every gleam of her eye, in every syllable of her speech and in every movement of her body, I see the only woman who could ever be an equal to me, and I know deep in my heart that I’ll do whatever it takes to protect her.

  Her hips shift back and forth slowly, and I feel my heart both swell and break, knowing what I have to do. The anger inside me demands nothing more, and I hope that some day she’ll forgive me for telling her I love her right before breaking her heart. But . . . that’s later.

  For now, I let my body take over, my cock quickly hardening as I encourage Shawnie to ride me, giving her full and total control and watching as she pleasures herself. Her body is sculpted out of heavenly beauty as the lights sparkle in her eyes, in the way the sweat trickles down her body like a waterfall of diamonds as she pushes herself, riding my cock not for me, but for herself. She slides back and forth, my hands cupping her breasts as she grinds and pleasures herself, her pussy gripping me as we find that harmony that we both seek. Our breaths, our hearts and our bodies become one, one soul sharing four eyes, two hearts. We rise higher and higher until I almost wonder if I’m still on the table at all until her pussy squeezes me tight and she starts to come again, my cock exploding deep inside her seconds later for another messy blast of bliss.

  “I’m getting my IUD taken out tomorrow,” Shawnie says in a soft laugh when she can open her eyes again to look at me. “If you’ve been programmed to create the next generation of perfection, then by God and sonny Jesus, I want that child to come from me.”

  I blink, and I can’t hide the shock on my face. Shawnie grows serious. “What’s wrong?” she asks.

  “I need to go,” I whisper, sitting up and lifting Shawnie off my finally tired out cock. “If I’m going to keep you safe, then I need to go.”

  “Go?” Shawnie asks, her eyes clouding. “What do you mean go?”

  “I mean that the only way this is going to be over is if I confront Mr. Robinson,” I say gently. “I need you to obey me on this. Get dressed, go home, and in my office, you’ll find a safe with an electronic lock. The code is my birthday. Inside is the code key to all of my bank accounts, along with a copy of my will. I named you my sole beneficiary and filed it with my lawyer last week.”

  Shawnie blinks, then shakes her head. “I can’t do that. I don’t understand. You act like confronting Mr. Robinson means you’re going to die. I need to understand why. I’m begging you.”

  “You promised to obey me,” I warn, trying to make my voice threatening, but Shawnie won’t have it. “You’re making me angry.”

  “You can be as pissed off and angry as you want, but I’m not going to leave you,” Shawnie says, reaching up to stroke my hair and kissing me. It’s a total change from what we’ve been. I’ve always been the one to initiate any kiss like this, and I fight her at first but she won’t give up, and I feel myself give in to her, the first time in my life I’ve ever submitted to anyone or anything. Shawnie pulls back, her eyes shining with love for me. “Thank you. Master, I’m not trying to disobey you or to disrespect you. I’m still going to serve you. Just like a King has his knights, I’m not going to let you go do something stupid without me being right next to you. That’s what love is.”

  I swallow, cupping her face and nodding. She truly is a new woman, powerful and intelligent and submissive and noble, if that makes any sense. “You realize that what we’re going to do is probably foolish, definitely stupid, certainly dangerous, and most likely going to get us killed? I embarrassed the man, beat his ass raw last time. He’s had people killed before, and now I’m saying that I need to go confront him again.”

  Shawnie nods, her eyes sparkling with newfound power. “Yeah. So what’s the plan?”

  Shawnie’s holding her phone when I come out of my home office, and I’m a little surprised when she doesn’t react when I take the two pistols out from behind my back. I’m impressed when I hand her one and she pops the magazine to see the nestled rounds inside before slamming it home and setting it down, not jacking the slide yet. “Remember? Carolina girl. We grow up with these things about as common as pickup trucks. And my dad was a convicted felon. Guess what for?”

  “Firearms?” I ask, and Shawnie nods.

  “He showed me how to use one of these things back when I was a little girl,” she says, her voice softly amused as she thinks about her past before it trails off. Shawnie’s face suddenly hardens when there’s a voice on the other end of the line. “Yeah . . . of course. We want to talk. Sure.”

  Shawnie takes her phone away from her ear and looks at me. “Mr. Robinson wants me to put him on speaker phone.”

  She hits a button on her phone, setting it on the table. “Go ahead.”

  “That’s better. So, Miss Holliday, Professor Meyers, what can I do for you tonight?”

  “You know what you can do for us. Leave us alone. We’re done with you and your Club,” I reply, taking Shawnie’s hand. “Your threats are getting stupid. There’s no way that Shawnie’s going to come down to The Club again after what you did.”

  “Well, that’s something we have to discuss, isn’t it? Let’s be reasonable businessmen, Rafe. Come down to The Club and we can talk about it.”

  I laugh harshly, Shawnie chuckling as well before she answers. “We’re not that stupid. I come within twenty meters of that place, and your boy Rocco is going to use that hand cannon he’s got on me.”

  Robinson mutters under his breath for a moment. Finally, he comes back on. “Fine. There’s a restaurant about three blocks from The Club, a diner that I own. They specialize in good pancakes. Let’s meet there.”

  It’s the best opportunity that we’re going to get, and I clear my throat. “Fine. Send the address to this phone, and we’ll meet you there at ten o’clock. We don’t want to take away too much from what must be a busy night for you.”

  Robinson chuckles darkly. “With you two out of my hair, my night’s going to get a lot easier.”

  The phone goes dead, a text coming in a minute later. Shawnie copies it into her map app on her phone and checks it out. “It’s just where he said it was, three blocks from The Club.”

  “Which means it’s a total setup,” I add. “We both know that neighborhood. There’s jack and shit there for a reason.”

  Shawnie hums and picks up her pistol on the counter. “Then I guess we go in together. I just found love. Don’t make me sit this one out.”

  It’s actually a little surreal driving from my home to the meetup point. After all, we know we’re driving into what most likely will be an ambush, and yet we’re still going. Inside me, the Program’s training is both helping me and telling me I’m being a damned fool. I’ve trained for more than this, and I stared death in the face for almost
my entire childhood.

  And I got a clear read on Mr. Robinson last time. He’s as deadly as any gangster, because not only is he totally immoral, he’s ambitious. Whoever Shawnie and I embarrassed him with, it’s someone who has what Robinson wants, and now it’s denied him. And he doesn’t like that at all, even more than being shown up.

  “Are you okay?” Shawnie asks as we get off the Interstate. “You look divided.”

  “Just getting my head right,” I reply tersely. I’m actually just worried about her being here with me. I’m practically taking her into danger.

  We drive by the diner, and inside I can see Mr. Robinson waiting at one of the booths. While he looks alone, looks can be deceiving, especially as there are three cars in the back of the diner. Continuing on, I park a block away and start back with Shawnie, the two of us keeping our eyes open. “By the way,” I mention quietly as we come around the corner and can see the diner. “I liked your idea.”

  “Of what?” Shawnie asks, and I glance over, smiling.

  “About the birth control. How many do you want?”

  “How many can you support?” Shawnie asks with a smirk. “Because you know I have some child bearing hips.”

  I chuckle, pulling her in close in the shadows to give her a quick kiss. “I think we could have a whole baseball team if you want. But I’d settle for a couple.”

  “A couple sounds perfect. After tonight, let’s make plans.”

  “Then let’s take care of business,” I reply, feeling the coldness of my fight mentality dropping over me.

  We go up to the diner, opening the glass door, and Mr. Robinson looks up, the gun on the table clearly visible. “I was wondering if you were really going to do it or if you were just trying to yank my crank. I know you two weren’t stupid enough to call the cops, considering who my members are.”

  “I’m sure you’ve been able to do whatever you want for quite a few years, Robinson,” I reply, Shawnie staying behind me just like we planned. “But not this time.”

  “Oh, I don’t think so,” Robinson says, and at his prompt, two men with MP5s step out of the kitchen. “Boys?”

  I don’t give them a chance to even think I’m going to surrender, instead drawing my pistol and firing. Shawnie’s right behind me, the blast of her muzzle near my ear deafening but unavoidable in the tight confines of the diner aisle. My two shots take the far gunman in his chest and throat, while Shawnie’s shot hits the nearest gunman in the heart, dropping them both.

  “Nice—” Shawnie starts to say, but then another roar fills the diner and a hot hammer of lead hits me in the shoulder. Mr. Robinson picked up his pistol. “Rafe!”

  I raise my gun and fire, but the pain in my shoulder, combined with Mr. Robinson moving, knocks my aim off just a little and he gets out of the way. Thankfully, in his rush to get out of the booth, he hits his hand on the tabletop, his gun going off harmlessly again into the roof of the diner, blowing out some of the fluorescent lamps but doing little else. I charge, covering Shawnie with my mass as I launch myself at him, both of us going over the back of the booth and onto the next table, clawing and fighting each other. My own gun goes flying, but I don’t really care as long as Shawnie’s safe.

  “Come on, you fuck!” Robinson says, his face a mask of hatred. My read on him was right. He’s a total egomaniac, and our standing up to him, to not letting him be the Alpha of all Alphas at The Club, has set him off in a murderous rage.

  I hear Shawnie yell something, but we’re rolling, and she’s unable to get a clear shot without fear of hitting me. Instead, she runs up to try and hit Mr. Robinson, but he kicks out with a hard-soled shoe, catching her in the ribs and sending her crumpling to the ground, screaming in pain. “Ohh!”

  The sound of Shawnie’s pain enrages me, and I roll us again, driving Robinson into the booth wall. I punch him in the throat and he gasps, choking on the pain and his own blood, but there’s no backing off this time. Instead, he grabs my shoulder, digging his thumb into the wound in my arm and squeezing. The numbing sensation of him twisting and digging his thumb into me makes me groan, loosening my grip on him, and he pushes me off, sending me tumbling to the floor where I feel my ankle give way as I hit the linoleum.

  “Now . . .” Robinson rasps, spitting up some blood with every syllable, “now I’ve got you right where I want you.”

  He raises his gun, but before he can fire, a loud pop echoes through the diner. A red bloom begins to blossom in Robinson’s chest, and he looks down in surprise, then over at Shawnie, who has her pistol raised in two trembling hands. “But . . . you’re the one who likes the pain.”

  “Why do you think I’m still up?” Shawnie looks him in the eyes, then squeezes the trigger again, this time hitting Mr. Robinson dead between the eyes. He drops back into his seat, surprise still written on his face before the pressure of the bullet vents through his eyes and two runnels of blood seep out like tears. She drops the gun, groaning as the pain overwhelms her again. I crawl over on my good hand and knees, coming over to her.

  “Are you okay?” I ask, and Shawnie groans again. “The ribs?”

  “I think he may have popped something. I don’t think anything’s broken. I don’t know. I’m an engineer, not a doctor,” Shawnie gasps. “We need to call for help.”

  Sirens are audible in the distance, and I look up, waiting. “I don’t think we’ll have to wait long. Here, give me your pistol.”

  “Why?” Shawnie asks, handing it over to me. I rub it on my shirt, then turn and point it at the ceiling, firing three more times before putting it on the table.

  “When the cops get here, I fired the shots. I had two guns, and you just got sprayed with the smoke because you were so close on my back. Understand?” I order. “Whatever fallout there is, I’m taking the blame.”

  Shawnie swallows, then nods. “I love you, Master.”

  “I love you, Angel.”

  Chapter 26

  Shawnie

  The nurse looks at me with wary eyes as she injects me with pain medications, but at least she’s being professional about it.

  “This should kick in in about two or three minutes,” she says, and I give her a tight smile. Since the initial kick from Mr. Robinson that caved in my ribs, the pain has faded from a sharp prodding to a dull roar with pokey points on either end, and I can tell from the way it hurts as I breathe that my initial idea was wrong and I’ve probably broken something.

  Not that I care. For some reason, knowing that Rafe went through more than this as a child makes me able to bear through it all.

  In my mind, I keep replaying the fight with Mr. Robinson and his men, the way the pistol felt in my hand as I aimed at the nearest gunman and fired, somehow knowing without even thinking that Rafe would shoot the other one. I’d shot a pistol like it before, but only at paper targets, and as I saw the results, I paused for half a moment, a half moment that nearly got me killed. Rafe absorbed the first shot from Mr. Robinson and returned fire, saving me in the process.

  I remember and recall the fight, watching helplessly as the two of them fought and clawed at each other and the way that Rafe groaned in pain from his wound.

  “Hey, we got the X-rays back,” the doctor says, his voice a forced chirpy to go along with his aged surfer boy haircut. I can see it in his eyes. The story’s already spread about the shootout, although considering there’s a cop sitting outside my treatment area, I guess it’s hard not to know. “It looks pretty normal.”

  “Normal?” I ask, confused. “It feels like I’ve got a hot knife in my lung.”

  “Totally normal,” the doctor says, giving me a reassuring smile. “You’ve got a crack in two of your ribs. I see it a lot in car accidents, actually. The pain is from that, but also, you’ve most likely got a lung contusion underneath.”

  “So what’s the treatment?” I ask, and the doctor carefully pats my leg.

  “Well, nothing, to be honest. They used to wrap your ribs back in the day, but we don’t do that
anymore. The main thing they need is rest.”

  The doctor leaves, and I wait, wishing I could see Rafe but unable to. They don’t even have him in the emergency room. They took him upstairs to take care of his shoulder. Instead, I sit, listening as the people in the treatment areas to the right and left of me complain about an infected boil, a cut on the scalp from a brother and sister playing ninja a little too realistically, and a druggie who’s being restrained while the doctors struggle to get his stomach pumped before the drugs can kill him.

  The curtain to my bed area opens again, and a man in a suit that still somehow screams ‘Police’ comes in. “Miss Holliday?”

  “I’m Shawnie Holliday,” I confirm. “What can I do for you, detective?”

  “We’re here to formally put you under arrest,” he says. “Now, I just got done talking with the doctor, and he says that you’re going to be admitted for two days. I personally agree with him, both because county lockup is no place for someone with any injuries, and second, because as soon as your name and the name of the man you were brought in with hit the computer, my Captain got pasty faced and said that he needs to make some calls.”

  “Guess I rate all-star treatment,” I reply, and the cop laughs. “What’s your name, detective?”

  “Sergeant Harbison,” he says, showing his badge. “San Francisco Police. Do you mind if I ask you some questions?”

  “No offense, but I’d rather not hand you the rope you want to hang me with,” I reply. “Besides, the nurse shot me up with something, and even a half-decent lawyer would probably get whatever you get thrown out in court. Do you know where Rafe is?”

  “From what I know, upstairs. You sure you won’t talk with me, Miss Holliday? Before I came in here, I read your file. I’m just trying to help you out.”