by Amelia Shea
Her head dug deep into the bed and she moaned. “Yes, just like that…”
T groaned. “Fuck!”
His hand left her pussy, falling next to her body as his chest pressed against her back, moving inside her at a faster pace. He grunted loud and stroked deeper inside her. She gasped as he pulled out from her and she felt his release on her back, his grunting loud and harsh.
She collapsed against the bed, feeling overwhelmingly tired and satisfied. She breathed heavily, her eyes drifting shut, her heart pounding.
She felt his hand on her neck but she didn’t have the energy to look up. He kissed her neck and traced his lips up to her ear.
“You make dirty…fucking beautiful.”
Cassie’s eyes remained closed, her lips curling into a small smile.
Chapter 24
THE next morning Cassie was ripping around the house looking for her file on the Burke party. She knew she had brought it home in hopes of finishing the minor details. Beverly expected the report. She glanced over at the stove. Shit! She was going to be late.
“Where’d ya leave it?”
T stood at the door dressed in his usual attire of black T-shirt, blue jeans, and bulky black boots. Leaning against the door, arms crossed, he looked like perfection. She released an exasperated sigh. “If I knew that I wouldn’t be looking for it. Stop standing there, all hot and broody, and help me find it.” She turned over a stack of papers on the counter. Please be among the mess! Nothing, damn!
Arms caged her waist and T’s lips planted on her shoulder. “Broody?”
“T.” She let out a frustrated breath. “Please, just help me find it.”
He chuckled and walked away.
Baxter poked his head up from behind the gate in the mudroom and barked.
“No way, little man, you’ve been out and fed. Playtime is for later.” She darted out of the kitchen into the living room stopping short of slamming into T’s solid body.
He smirked and held up a folder. Thank God. Cassie let out a sigh of relief.
“God, I love you.” She reached for the file and noticed everything around them stop. She gazed up at him. He stood silent and peered down at her, his face tight, almost strained. His temple pulsed and he continued to stare down at her.
Realization struck her fast and she inhaled deeply. She had just told T she loved him. She didn’t mean to but at that moment, he saved her ass. She said the first thing that came to her mind. It wasn’t said in an “I love you with all my heart, I want to be with you forever” kind of way, although that was how she was feeling about him.
“Are you freaked out?”
He stared back at her. Damn, he was freaked out.
“I’m sorry, too soon…”
His hands wrapped around her neck and his lips pressed hard against her mouth. He kissed her slowly, small pecks on her lips. He pulled back slightly, their faces still close. “Say it again.”
Cassie whispered, “I love you.”
Lips pressed against hers. “Again.”
She smiled. “I love you, T.”
His head came to rest on hers. “Go get your stuff, we’re gonna be late.”
She took note that he didn’t say it back. That wasn’t the reason she said it, but the words would have been nice. She stepped back and turned to the stairs, trying to mask the disappointment of him not saying it back.
* * * *
T watched her walk up the stairs, cursing himself for the look on her face. She wanted to hear him say the words. Words he’d never said to anyone except his mom, on her deathbed. T wasn’t a words type of person but those words only uttered to his mom were the hardest. They held power. When he said them, he had to mean it.
“Fuck!”
Did he love her? He wanted her, craved her. The thought of her with another guy enraged him but was that love? He wanted to be with her, now and down the road. His recent thought of the future included her; did that mean he loved her?
“Hey, let’s go.”
T watched her grab her bag and start to the door. She didn’t look over at him. He reached out for her hand and halted her.
She stared at him. He had to say it, he just couldn’t find his voice. Her face softened, coming closer to his rigid body. He wanted to say it. Looking at her, seeing her, he’d say it. He loved her but the words just couldn’t come from his lips.
She moved her hand out of his and rested both on his chest. His head dipped down to meet her lips. She kissed his mouth and muttered, “When you’re ready.”
She pulled back and a small smile played on her lips, although it didn’t quite reach her eyes. But she would wait. He knew she meant it—when he was ready to say it.
She strolled out the door, T locking up before heading down the stairs and into the truck.
The drive to her office was quiet, both their minds on something else. T assumed she was thinking the same as him. Fuck! He should have said it back.
He pulled into the parking lot.
“So, I’m just gonna make a quick stop at the apartment during lunch.”
He slammed on his brakes. “No! No fucking way, I told you, it’s too dangerous.”
“Jeez, T, relax. I’ll be quick and careful.”
“No! You don’t take one step near there, ya hear me? Don’t you fucking remember last time?”
“But I just…”
“No. I told you, until Jimmy is brought in, you are not to go back to your place. Ya need something, I’ll get one of the guys to go but you stay the fuck away, Cass.”
“I want to go, I’ll be fine…”
T threw the truck in park and whipped around to her. “Why? Just because you’re pissed I didn’t say it back? I’m not gonna let ya do something stupid.”
She gasped and her face turned red. T saw the anger permeate through her. If he wasn’t so angry right now, he’d see the humor in her getting mad and looking cute as hell.
She threw the door open and jumped out before T could grab her arm.
“For your information, I just wanted to stop by to get more clothes, and my lingerie, asshole. I figured I’d surprise you tonight.” T’s anger seeped and his eyebrows cocked up at the thought of her in lingerie. His cock stirred in his jeans.
“And for the record, T, I was being honest when I said it. I’ll wait until you’re ready. I’m not mad you didn’t say it back. I didn’t say it so you’d say it back. I love you, jerkoff. Period. Done. End of story. When and if you ever tell me you love me, I want it to be because you love me, not because you feel obligated to say it. And for you to throw it in my face is really fucking shitty!” She slammed her door and stomped into her office, ignoring him when he called out to her.
Fuck!
Chapter 25
HE looked at his door when he heard the knock.
“Hey, man, what’s up? How’s Lulu?” T snickered.
“Fuck you, asshole. Fucking Lulu, you are getting payback for that shit.” Stone shook his head in disgust. He was sure he would be paid back for that; he was ready.
T closed his screen and leaned back in his chair, resting his elbows on the arm of the chair. “What’s up?”
“Could we have missed something with Jimmy?” Stone was bothered like the rest of them that they hadn’t gotten him yet.
“Fuck if I know, man.” T sighed. “Bogs is heavy into it. Trent says Jimmy is like David fucking Copperfield. Every time we locate his ass, he disappears. That right there says he’s got some backing.”
“Okay, he’s got backing, but he’s still local, he’s not leaving. He needs something.”
“Agreed.”
Bogs came into the office closing the door behind him. T and Stone watched as he came up to T’s desk and opened his laptop, punched on the keys, and stepped back.
“Got something?” Stone asked.
“Why is he so hell-bent on getting his sister out?” Bogs asked.
“Family l
oyalty?” Stone replied.
“Nah, he doesn’t give a shit about her. He’s a user, loyal to himself only.”
“Then why is that the only thing he mentioned to Cassie?” Bogs said.
They all stared back and forth at one another. It was strange that he was so fucking adamant about getting Tina out. From the few weeks that T spent with her, he didn’t get much out of her. She did mention her brother was her dealer but snitched that he’d sell out their mom for a sale. There was no love lost there. But still, it was as if he needed her out.
“Motherfucker!” T shouted.
“What?” Stone watched T as he got up from his chair.
“He threatened Cassie that I needed to get her out of rehab.”
“Yeah, so?” Bogs asked.
“No one knows she’s at the safe house, everyone thinks she’s in jail. The only way he’d know she’s detoxing and not in jail was if she told him herself. Fuck! I bet she stashed it for him.”
“Shit!” Stone hissed.
“But wait, wouldn’t she tell him where it is?”
“Not if he can’t get to it. He doesn’t want her out, he needs her out. Where’s the first place Tina will go when she gets out? A place we’re watching, that he knows he can’t get in?”
Bogs shrugged. “Her apartment.”
“Son of a bitch.” Stone headed to the door. “We must have missed something. We never even flipped it. Fuck.”
The three of them stormed out, hopping in Stone’s truck and heading over to Cassie’s old apartment. T had stopped in a few times to pick shit up for Cassie. Just this morning she had bitched about wanting to stop there for a few more things. T shut her down when she suggested running over during her lunch break.
He made a call to the safe house. He spoke to Marnie about the possibility of Tina getting hold of a phone. He hung up, muttering, “Fuck!”
Stone looked over at T. “What did she say?”
He inhaled deeply. “She said it’s possible, she could have bribed someone.”
They pulled up and trudged up the five flights. Opening up the door, they discovered that the place reeked. T flicked the switch but got nothing. Power was turned off. The smell of rotting food in the fridge made Bogs gag.
“Stop being a bitch. Flip it, everything.” They all scattered and began to rip everything apart. The apartment had been trashed by Jimmy previously, which made it harder for them. Drawers, cabinets, cushions, everything was flipped. Twenty minutes later, T was walking out of the bedroom when he heard Bogs in the front hallway.
“Holy shit!”
T and Stone met up at the kitchen and stalked to Bogs. He got up from the floor and shined his flashlight down into a hole in the floor. Thousands, possibly millions of dollars of cocaine lay in large, plastic-covered rectangles.
“My foot snagged on the hinge, I pried it open, and here it is…Jimmy’s life.”
“I’ll call it in,” Stone said.
An hour later, the apartment was swarming with cops and the Feds. They no longer needed to find him because when word got out, Jimmy was as good as dead. Without this stash, he was a dead man walking. That was why he needed Tina out. He needed her to grab the drugs.
After giving their statements, they were free to leave. Bogs made a call to Marnie; the police were on their way to pick up Tina from the safe house. Tina had been given a second chance; she fucked up. Now, she’d be detoxing in jail for a very long time.
“Let’s get the hell outta here,” T said.
They headed over to his dad’s house. He had texted Cassie a few times but they went unanswered. Obviously, she was still pissed. He sighed. He’d make it up to her. The small words he wanted to say would make it up to her.
They pulled into his dad’s driveway.
“Exactly how many meetings does it take to have one wedding?” Bogs chimed in from the back seat.
Stone let out a sigh and shook his head. “As many as Rox says. Good thing I’m only getting married once.” He pulled in front of the house and parked. They all got out and walked up to the house. Bogs opened the door to a female shriek. “It’s about time, let’s go.”
Bogs turned back to T and Stone. “I ever get married, remind me to elope.”
T and Stone laughed as they filed in, prepared for a long afternoon.
Chapter 26
CASSIE’S teeth chattered so hard her gums began to get sore. She was sure she had never been this cold in her life. Growing up in Houston, her body wasn’t used to this cold, but honestly, who was? It was a bitter cold. Her eyes darted to the window. The air conditioner hummed and blew out the frigid air. She prayed it would break from overuse. She gazed over to the second window with yet another unit. She was going to freeze to death in the middle of August in Texas. Ironic.
The cabin was small and damp, which probably increased her chances of hypothermia. Tears streamed down her cheeks. They were never going to find her. She was in the middle of nowhere. Even if she could get the rope off her bound hands and legs, get out of the cabin and find a phone, she wouldn’t even know where to tell T to come get her.
“Oh, God,” she whispered to herself.
She had woken up with a pounding headache; Jimmy had gotten her good before she passed out in her apartment. Why did she even go back? All for lingerie and proving a point that she would be careful. She should have listened to T. Of all the stupid things she’d done in her life that had been by far the dumbest. T’s voice popped in her head. You need something, you tell me and I’ll get it but you don’t fucking go there, pix, I mean it. He was going to be furious.
She wiped her face on her knees; she was sitting on the dirty floor with her hands tied behind her back, knees drawn up. Her body was trying to defy reality and huddle up for heat. It was no use, she was freezing. She continually shivered. It was too cold; she wasn’t going to survive.
The creaking to her right got her attention. Jimmy, dressed in shorts and a T-shirt, came in through the cabin door. He had a brown bag in his hands and a sinister grin aimed at her.
“Whoo, like a fucking icebox in here.” He placed the bag on the table and reached for a sweatshirt hanging off the chair.
“Better put this on before I catch pneumonia. Damn, girl, ya got the shakes or something?” He laughed, watching her. Piece of shit motherfucker.
He sat on the chair facing Cassie and reached in the bag. He pulled out what looked like a deli sandwich and proceeded to open it up and take a huge bite. “Mmmmm…so good.” He gestured at her with the sandwich. With food falling out of his mouth, he asked, “Want some?”
Her body shook uncontrollably from the cold and pure fear. The look in his eyes told her he had gotten his fix. A junkie high on crack was what nightmares were made of.
“So, here’s what I think we’re gonna do. We’ll make a call, let fuckwad know where his pussy is, and see what he’s willing to trade for you.” He stood up and stalked over to her. She tried to inch further back against the wall but there was no escape. He bent down and smirked. “What do ya think you’re worth to him?”
Cassie just stared back at Jimmy. She wanted to tell him to fuck off but self-preservation made her lips tighten, not saying a word. Maybe, just maybe, she’d survive. Maybe?
Jimmy reached into his back pocket and pulled out his phone. “Let’s find out…”
* * * *
T glanced down at his phone for the third time in the last hour. Where the fuck is she? She was supposed to call when she was done for the day. She was getting out early but he was still unsure exactly what time. He hadn’t heard anything. He’d texted her three times in the last hour but got no response. Her ass would be sore for days when he finally got to her. She wanted to be mad at him, fine, but not answering his texts? No fucking way.
“T!” Roxanne shouted. He looked up to see her glare. “No phones I said. C’mon, we gotta get this done. You all have to stop being assholes and help.”
T rolled his eyes. “Why the fuck am I even here, it’s not my ass getting hitched.”
“Yet, you pussy-whipped motherfucker.”
“Fuck you, Bogs.”
He laughed and slammed his hand on the table. “Dickhead’s not even denying it. Fucking love it.”
“Shut up, both of you.” Roxanne turned to T. “You’re here because you’re the best man. Now shut up and let’s get all the details set.”
Roxanne started talking about seats and food, and T, as he had done for the last hour, blocked her out. He looked across at Bogs, who was wearing a shit-eating grin and mouthed, “Pussy.” T flipped him off and sighed.
Rox had demanded everyone be at their dad’s so all the wedding shit could be finalized. They had all sat around the dining room table for the last two hours. Sadie and Roxanne were at the head of the table, Stone looking bored off his ass but anytime Sadie looked over at him, that fucker would smile. Now, that asshole was pussy-whipped.
Ethan and Bogs sat across from T and Stone. Oddly enough, Emory was a no-show, much to Ethan’s relief. T was sure of that. His dad had bailed twenty minutes ago.
“Okay, so, seating. Here’s the chart I set up, what do ya think?” Ethan’s phone rang and Roxanne glared in his direction. Quickly looking down, he squinted and clicked the phone. He must have hit Ignore.
“I think we should do a sweetheart table, I love…”
Ethan’s phone rang again.
“No phones!” Roxanne shouted.
“I gotta take it, Rox, it’s unknown, could be a client.” Ethan pushed back in his chair and started to get up as he answered. “Ethan Barrett.”
T watched confusion flood over Ethan’s face. “Who is this?”
Ethan straightened and T watched the color drain from his face. What the hell was going on? Ethan’s eyes slowly trailed over to T and the look on his face had T mouthing, “What?”
Ethan kept his eyes on T but remained quiet, listening to the person on the other line. T’s heart dropped when he heard Ethan speak.
“Cassie?”