He laughed. “You’re relentless. The nipples are out because I don’t want anyone seeing your nipples except me.”
“But what if I had a woman do it? And I could start with just one nipple.”
“Avery, it’s so painful. I don’t want you to do that. And...” he just stopped and looked at me with this really strange look on his face.
“What?”
He shook his head and said, “Nothing.”
“Oh no you don’t. That’s one of those withholding information from Avery things I don’t like.”
“No, it’s not that at all. Really.”
“Preston,” I warned.
“Shit. Okay, what if someday you want children and you have pierced nipples?”
That struck me as hilarious and I broke out in fits of giggles.
“You think that’s funny?” he asked.
“Yes,” I squeaked out. “I mean, I would just take out the rings or bars or whatever. It’s not a big deal Preston.” I kept on laughing. He finally started laughing too.
“Okay, you scored on that one.”
“Oh my God. You’re like a Puritan or something.”
“I am not! I just don’t want you in pain. That’s all.”
My heart thumped a little and I kissed him. “You’re sweet Preston.”
“Avery,” he said against my lips, “if you get a tattoo, those hurt like hell too.”
“I’m tough Preston,” I told him. “Can I ask you something?”
“Sure.”
“If your piercings were done to you, why do you keep them?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know anymore. At first it was sort of my badge of courage. Then I did it as a protest to what I had been through. And now, they’ve just sort of been there for so long, I’ve gotten used to them. But I must confess, seeing how much they turn you on, there’s no way I’ll ever get rid of them now.”
Our kisses took over and well, it seemed like we couldn’t help ourselves. Things got way out of control and this time he took my hands and pulled me up until I was straddling his mouth again. “Honey, you might want to hold on again,” he said as he told me to ride him. Good heavens, the man was relentless. He had me making all sorts of noises and finally I shouted his name a few dozen times. About that time, I felt him slide me back a bit and then he was inside of me and there I was, making all those noises again. He sat up and held me tight against him as he caressed me deep inside and I felt myself fall right off that edge of ecstasy as he quickly followed me, calling my name.
Soon after that, the phone rang. Embarrassingly enough, it was the hotel management. Apparently, our neighbors had complained about all the noises coming from our room and we were asked to keep it down. My face flamed, but Preston only laughed.
“Come on Avery, let’s take a shower,” he said, reaching for my hand.
“Oh dear. I know what this means.”
Showers with Preston were never about just getting clean. Our neighbors were not going to be happy at all.
“Perhaps we should go to your place after this.”
“My neighbor won’t like it either. He complained about Melissa and I being too loud. Of course, Melissa does have a loud voice.”
Preston gave me that look. “What was Melissa doing?”
“Talking. She’s a bit boisterous.”
“Right. I saw her skiing one day and I had to stop and stare as she flew down the slope. She was screaming. I think everyone stopped and stared.”
“I know. She was a sight, wasn’t she?”
“She certainly was.”
We laughed.
I added, “One thing I love about her though is that she’s comfortable in her own skin. And Griffin and Marley, her ski instructors, were drooling over her.”
“Hmm. Well, she must have that certain charm.”
Preston had gotten the shower going and we got in, but ended up getting sidetracked, as I knew we would. By the time we got out, another hour had passed and the message light was flashing on the phone. It was the management again asking us to change rooms.
We never made it to the slopes that day. Preston checked out of the Grand Ski Lodge and into my super sized studio apartment. We shopped for some food to cook for dinner and stayed in the rest of the night. I did my best to keep Avery-kitty at her quietest. It must’ve worked because my neighbor never knocked on my door.
Chapter 28
Preston
We were out for our day of skiing that we never got to yesterday. Avery had the day off so we were spending it on the slopes. She promised to show me the back of the mountain and to try to teach me some of her special moves. I doubt I’d catch on, but I really just wanted to watch her up close anyway.
“So I was thinking we could start out at Game Creek Bowl, and then move further back, depending on how you do,” Avery said.
“What, you don’t think I can handle the big stuff?”
“I didn’t say that. I just want to gauge your skill level first.”
“Fair point,” I conceded.
Avery warned that it would be crowded, being Christmas week and all. I didn’t care. As long as I was with her, I’d be happy.
We made it to our destination and she put me through some initial blue runs. She seemed to be pleased with my skiing ability so she took me on a few black runs. The mountain had gotten increasingly crowded as the morning passed. We did a few runs and had just hopped on a lift when Avery decided we would head to the back, to hopefully find an area that had fewer skiers.
As we rode the lift, I suddenly felt a searing pain on my right shoulder. My body stiffened in shock as much as in pain, for I was positive I had just been shot.
“What’s wrong?” Avery immediately felt my reaction.
“Nothing,” I grimaced.
“Okay, didn’t we just have a conversation yesterday about not lying?”
“Yeah, we did. I want you to do something for me. Lean your head on my shoulder and act very nonchalant.”
“Okay, but what’s going on?”
“Just do it and I’ll explain.”
“I’m here. Now what’s up?”
“I’ve been shot in my right shoulder. We need to get out of here because whoever did this is behind us.”
“Holy fuck Preston!”
She went to turn around but I grabbed her, stopping her in time.
“Honey, don’t do that. I don’t want to give them any idea that we know they’re back there. I also don’t want them to know they hit me. Right now, they may only think they got my jacket.”
“Okay.”
Her breathing had picked up and I could almost feel her heart beating. She was having a major adrenaline surge.
“Listen to me Avery. We need a plan. Now you know this mountain better than they do. Can you think of any way to get us to safety?”
She was quiet for a minute and then she grinned. “Hell yeah. We’re gonna ski the Minturn Mile.”
“Explain.”
“When we get off this lift, we need to haul ass on Lost Boy. It’s a green run, Preston, and very easy. But we need to hit it as hard as we can. It’ll take us to the gate where we can access the out of bounds ski area. That will lead us directly to a section called the Minturn Mile, but it’s really more like three. It’s an out of bounds run that goes all the way into the town of Minturn. It’s kind of rough in spots, but you can do it. There are only a couple of dicey areas you’ll need to worry about. If we can get there fast, they won’t know where we went. We can be in Minturn in ten minutes and then get to someplace safe.”
“Okay, let’s do it.”
“What about your shoulder?”
“Don’t worry about it. I’m fine.”
“What do you mean you’re fine? You’ve been shot!”
“Avery, I’m okay. Let’s just get out of here and we’ll worry about this later. Okay?”
“Okay. Follow me then. I’ll be in front when a change in direction is necessary. I’ll let you lead the ot
her times. I can bring up the rear and move around so they can’t see either of us clearly.”
“No way will you be bringing up the rear. That’s entirely too dangerous. I’ll be in back.”
“Huh uh. I’m a better skier than you and I can stick to the tree line. That way, I’ll be harder to hit and you’ll have a bigger lead. I can zigzag and they will have a tougher time with me in back.”
“I don’t know, Avery.”
“Shut up and listen to me on this Preston. I know what I’m talking about here.”
“But what if...”
“Stop thinking about the ‘what ifs.’ One more thing Preston. Whatever you do, don’t fall.”
“Right.”
I didn’t like the idea of her being in the back, vulnerable to whoever was shooting at me, but she did have a valid point. We got off the lift and she took off like a slingshot. I followed her as best I could, but the girl had speed for a middle name. She zoomed to this opening in the boundary and went right through it. I followed her, not bothering to look behind me. When we got off the beaten path, the snow became rough and much more difficult to ski on. From watching Avery though, you would’ve thought she was on the most pristine groomed slope. She looked like a professional.
I followed her as close as I could, but she skimmed the trees and that made me a bit nervous. She dropped back a bit, letting me pass her, and then I didn’t have any idea of what she did behind me. My mission was to get out of there as fast as I could, so my focus was on my skis because a fall could cost one of us our life.
Every now and again, she would shoot in front of me, turning direction and I’d follow. We came to one section that resembled a gully as it followed a creek and then we actually had to cross it. Eventually we ended up in the little town of Minturn and had about a half mile hike to get to the local saloon.
“You really did great back there Preston,” Avery said.
“Thanks, but let’s get out of here. I need to call Pete because we can’t go back to your apartment. It’s too dangerous.”
“Right. I know a guy at the saloon and I think he can give us a ride back to the village.”
“Well, let me make that call while we walk.”
So I called Pete and he told us to go directly to Slopeside Condominiums, Unit 2A, in East Vail.
We headed to the local saloon and sure enough, we walked in and Avery headed straight for the bartender, who hugged her. I felt a huge stab of jealousy shoot through me as I stood back and watched. Turning to me, she introduced us. The bartender’s name was Duke, and he called for Mary, one of the other employees to fill in while he walked us out back to his car. We loaded up and he drove us to the East Vail condo.
I slipped him fifty bucks for driving us and we shook hands as I got out of the car. We knocked on the door, and a man I hadn’t met opened it and let us in. I gave him our names and he led us inside. Avery headed to the nearest couch, dropped down and unzipped her jacket. The dark stain that was spreading across her white shirt made me stumble.
“Oh fuck no!”
I was by her side in a second. “Why didn’t you say something?”
“Because I knew we needed to get out of there and I was afraid,” she struggled to get the words out, right before she lost consciousness.
********
I snatched my phone and hit Pete’s number. He answered on the second ring.
“We’ve both been hit. Avery and I. She needs a medic. Stat! We’re at the address you gave us.”
I tossed my phone aside and checked her vitals. Everything seem strong. Pulling off her jacket, I pulled her shirt out of the way so I could see her wound. It appeared she’d been shot in the side, but my first impression was that it might only be a flesh wound. At least that was my hope. The bullet had passed clean through her. The bad news was it had been a large caliber, so it had torn quite a bit of tissue. I yelled at the man to grab some clean towels and made a compression bandage to help stop the bleeding.
“Avery,” I gently rubbed her cheeks. “Avery honey, wake up for me.” Her lids fluttered open and she tried to sit up but I stopped her. “Don’t move sweetheart. Just sit tight.”
“What’s going on?”
“We’re waiting for some help to arrive.”
“What about your shoulder?”
“It’s fine.” I kept pressure on her wound and asked, “Do you hurt much?”
“No,” she grimaced.
“Hey, that lying thing goes both ways, you know.”
“Okay. I’ve been shot. What do you think Preston?”
I should’ve noticed how ashen her skin was. How could that have slipped by me? Her eyes were glazed and she was slipping again.
“Avery, stay with me baby. Help is coming. Honey, you have to focus on me now. I need you to stay with me.”
“Yeah. Okay,” she nodded. “I’m scared Preston.”
“Don’t be. I’ve got you honey. I’m not gonna let anything happen to you. You hear me?”
She nodded, but those damn eyes of her ate right into my soul, tearing me apart. I grabbed my phone and hit Pete’s number again. When he answered I screamed, “Where the fuck are they Pete?”
“Hang on man. Give them a chance to get there.”
“She needs a fucking medical team. Stat.”
“Preston, stay calm. They should be there any minute.”
“Yeah, well, if they’re not, heads are gonna roll all over the fucking place. You hear me?”
“Stay on the phone with me man. You need to calm down. For her. You hear me?”
I inhaled, as much as my body would let me anyway. My lungs felt like they had a tight band squeezing the fuck out of them.
“I’m trying, but you’re not seeing what I am.”
“Preston, they’re outside your door. Let them in. I have confirmation.”
It took me all of a half a second to yank the door open and six guys stood there. They pushed me out of the way and took over. Pete kept me on the phone, but within minutes, they informed me we had to go to the hospital. Her blood pressure was dropping and she was in serious condition. The Vail Valley Medical Center was only ten minutes away. They carried her to their car, and off we went.
The ER was expecting us, as Pete had called. He’d also called in the local police for added protection. I refused to leave her side until they wheeled her into surgery. That was when I allowed them to look at my shoulder. Fortunately, the bullet had only grazed my arm, slicing through a bit of muscle. I would be sore for a few days, but they were able to patch me up without doing any kind of surgery.
Avery was a different story. The bullet had gone clear through her, but it had done quite a bit of damage internally. The surgeons were amazed it hadn’t dropped her like a stone, and that she had continued to ski. She had significant blood loss and damage to her spleen. She would make a full recovery, but I wasn’t sure I would get over this. I was furious.
********
Pete and I sat in his hotel room. It was the first time in five days I had agreed to leave the hospital. The only reason I did was to have words, serious words with him.
“This is it Pete. I’m done. This shit has to end. Avery almost died. You know, when it was only me, I didn’t really give that much of a shit. Then they started on my family. I should’ve manned up when they hit my dad. But no, I let them have their way, and talk me into doing my duty as a faithful employee. Then they threatened my mom and sister. Ruined their lives. And what did I do? I buckled and was the faithful fucking employee again. I’ve given too many lives to the DEA. Not anymore. This time it’s gone too far. Avery’s life is way more important to me than anything else in this damn world. The final line’s been crossed. I don’t care what it takes. Send in the fucking U.S. Army. Whatever. It. Fucking. Takes. Do it. Because if you guys don’t, I’m going to CNN, Fox, ABC, CBS, NBC, and anyone else that will listen. I’m serious Pete. I want this shit to end. I’ve given everything I have to give, but I’m not giving any more. You got
it?”
Pete looked at me and I wasn’t sure if he believed me.
“You don’t think I’ll do it?”
“I didn’t say that.”
I picked up a pen that was on the bedside table and started flipping it between my fingers. “Don’t doubt me Pete. You haven’t lost your family or any loved ones because of this stupid job. I’ve been pushed to my limits and I’ll go to any lengths...desperate lengths to save Avery.” All the time I was flipping the pen and suddenly the damn thing snapped and ink stained my fingers and hand. I stared at it for a moment and then got up and walked to the bathroom and calmly washed it off.
When I came back into the room, Pete was on his phone, talking to his boss. His conversation was heated, but it was all about me. He was on my side. I knew it might take a while, but I had scored points and he would do what he could to get the cartel taken care of.
“I don’t care what we have to do. He’s given not only his life, but his family’s as well,” Pete said.
There was a pause in the conversation. Then Pete said, “Send in the fucking CIA or the Marines. Just take them all out. I don’t want him looking over his shoulder every minute. What would you do if it were your son?”
More words and minutes passed and I motioned to Pete that I was leaving. I wanted to get back to Avery. I knew he had my back. When I hit the hallway, my guard was waiting on me. He escorted me back to the hospital.
********
Avery was sitting up in her bed when I made it back. Seeing the bits of roses in her cheeks made me smile. For five days her skin had gone from gray to white and now it had that slight pinkish cast to it.
“Well, hello there honey. How’s my girl today?”
“Better, I think. I’m not really sure.”
I frowned. That’s not what I wanted to hear. “What is it?”
She scooted around in the bed and winced.”
“Do you need something for pain?”
“No, I’m okay.”
Kissing Fire Page 23