by Gem Sivad
Hack orchestrated a rescue without leaving his chair. He’d helped the parents negotiate with the guards turned kidnappers, packed a bag full of money, and paid Smoke, Inc. for a fast, quiet, exchange.
I’d headed the extraction crew. Though the guards had aimed weapons at the helicopter, they hadn’t fired. We’d returned the college boy back to the states for a happy ending.
That, plus the big check we’d all split, had made the job seem easy. But I’d bent more than a few international laws in the process. I felt queasy thinking about that job, so yeah, Hatch owed us. Frankly, he scared the shit out of me.
“How far back you want him to go?” Jack asked, interrupting my thoughts.
“I’d rather keep Hack’s favor unused for now. And what the fuck does it matter where Holly’s been and what she’s done? She’s the mother of my kid.”
I’d seen no sign of drug use, she claimed I was her first fuck, and she wasn’t one of Maxine’s regular escorts. I believed her. But if she’d cut corners on the story of her life, it was up to her to share her truth.
“Whatever Holly wants me to know, she’ll share.” I pointed at the house. “I already know her grandfather lived here.” I thought of the giant bed upstairs and added. “I know he was a big guy. Think about that. My size genes plus Holly’s height genes equal…”
“Equal we better find an extra-long crib before the kid arrives,” Jack answered and grinned.
Jack stayed put for most of the afternoon and though he was not ready to embrace Holly into the fold, I could see he liked her house. He helped me move my clothes from the office before we went shopping.
“So, your rent covers use of the main room?” Jack asked slyly.
“Yep.”
“Do you say that, or does she say that?”
“She can use the chair when I’m not here.” Why the fuck would she care if I stuck a chair in the front room?
I tested the recliners in the furniture store and only found one where my feet didn’t hang over the end when I powered back. It made the choice easy.
“Maybe I should get her one to match,” I’d offered.
“Son. What you don’t want to do is try to redecorate a woman’s space. You won’t like the outcome.”
With that advice in my head, I settled on just the one recliner for the living room. We carted it home and carried it in, angling it, so I could see her front door.
That was when I realized she needed a serious upgrade in the television department. Unless she had it hidden away, she didn’t have one. We remedied that with a 70” curved 4K.
I admit, I enjoyed pretending I belonged in the house. Just being in the place gave me a sense of home I hadn’t experienced since Kit died. I knew the Jack felt it too. We slouched at the kitchen table, drinking coffee and conducting business like we had a right to be here. That was a stretch, and we both knew that too.
“I don’t want to take piss her off and have her kick me out,” I told Jack at one point. Really, it had more to do with fear of being locked out of her life than her house. I didn’t want to fight with the mother of my kid. I wanted to see the day to day progress as the baby developed. Living in the house this way, I’d get to be part of that.
“You’re not gonna be around enough for her to realize what a pain in the ass you are. Quit worrying.” Favoring that advice, after I set aside guilt over making myself comfortable in Holly’s home, we made calls, arranging a company powwow the next day.
“Might as well meet here,” Jack drawled. “Might make the schedule change go down better.” He’d quit testing the limits of my lease when we installed the TV.
Here or somewhere else, the meeting had to happen. While TV shopping, a New Mexico state official caught up with me via phone, requesting Smoke, Inc. travel asap to the out of control fire, raging there, rather than deploying mid-week as planned. I’d promised them we’d be there and working the fire by Monday.
Now I had to break the news to the crew. We’d expected the job to keep us busy until the end of the month. But, they wouldn’t be happy they only had until the end of the weekend to take care of business.
Realizing during the afternoon I had my own personal business to tend, I called the company lawyer and made sure if anything happened to me on this job, my kid and his mama would always be taken care of.
Jack left, and as I wandered around Holly’s yard, I got the attention of one of her neighbors.
“Is Holly moving?”
I studied the old guy leaning on the adjoining fence, trolling for information. When I didn’t volunteer any, he continued. “New furniture? You her boyfriend?” He’d obviously been spying on her for a while.
“Security detail,” I answered and left him standing there to chew on that.
Ten-foot privacy fence, I mentally added to my backyard wish list and retreated to the great indoors to doze in my new chair. I expected Holly to eventually come home from her waitressing job. But, when she hadn’t shown by midnight, I started to worry and made some calls.
Holly
After the sports bar, I still had an eleven-to-seven at my warehouse job, stocking shelves at Humble Homes. After I clocked off at Balls & Bones at 10:30, with a pocketful of tips to add to Marty’s check, I hustled to catch a bus for the ride across town.
I didn’t want to hurt the baby doing something stupid, so I called Garret from the bar. I figured he’d give me some information I could trust, he was free, and I had a card with the clinic’s number on it. I expected an answering service to patch me through. But, he answered immediately.
“Hi, Garret. Sorry to bother you but there’s stuff I need to know about my condition.”
“Are you asking me as a friend or a doctor?” he fired back rapidly. “Because it’s not my specialty.”
“A knowledgeable friend.” Never mind that it was late at night and my behavior rude, I shamelessly used Garret. It was called networking. He’d been in my basement and he was a friend of Marty’s. Marty was more than a friend, but not in a known category. While I pondered our connection, Garret grunted, which I accepted as encouragement.
“How much weight can I lift?”
“Please tell me you’re not getting ready to bench press a hundred pounds.”
“Nope. Have to do some lifting at my job and just wanted to make sure I—”
“No throwing your partner in the air. Do you perform with him?”
“No. I help him rehearse for his Regina routine.” I grinned, sensing interest on the other end of the conversation. “Roger’s a best friend.”
“Who’s his partner when he performs?” Garret’s voice dropped to a low rumble and I swear I could hear his pheromones calling.
“He chooses someone from the audience.”
“That could be disastrous,” Garret’s sharp response had me grinning. Yep, he was interested.
“You’ll have to tell him so. I’ve pointed that out, but Roger does things his way. Meanwhile, what weight limit would you put on my lifting?”
“Nothing heavier than a tray of glasses,” he answered. “A light tray of glasses.”
“Thank you, Garret. Sorry I called so late.” Not good news but Garret didn’t seem to mind at all that I’d called.
“I was going to call you anyway. Marty ask me to schedule an appointment for you with a pre-natal specialist. Do you have a preference?” His answer confirmed Marty had already begun arranging things.
“Yes. I prefer to choose my own doctor. Thanks for the offer, but your assistance isn’t needed.” I started to hang up.
“Wait,” Garret said, his voice a low, demanding growl.
“What?”
“Your friend, Roger. Can I have his number?”
“No. But, I’ll tell him you asked about him. I’ll give him your number if you want. He gets busy. If he doesn’t call, you should check out his show some Friday night.” I hung up quickly and called Roger.
“What’s up?”
“Garret’s interested.”
My matchmaking skills didn’t go any further. “Good luck, Roger. It would be nice to have a doctor in the family.”
I returned to my own problems.
I didn’t know Marty’s end game. Sheesh, I didn’t even know mine. My stomach knotted on thoughts of going home. Though I’d given Marty a key, I hadn’t willingly cohabited with anyone since I was fifteen and departed the group home where I’d lived.
Given Garret’s medical advice, once I arrived at the next job, I told the floor manager that I had a touch of the flu.
“I don’t feel so hot. Kind of ache all over. I hope I’m not infectious. I don’t think I can lift much tonight.” My story must have resonated true, because he stepped back, not wanting to catch whatever I had.
“Use the barcode scanner to track inventory instead of shelving boxes for the night. That way you can get in your hours but not give whatever you’ve got to anyone else.” Not that I could, but hey, my excuse worked.
He pulled out his pen, made notes on the duty roster he kept pinned next to the timeclock and said, “Not a problem. I’ll give Richards the lift and stack detail this time. She loves the crow’s nest.”
I hid my disappointment. I liked riding the lifter and looking over the warehouse from the top shelving.
However, the barcode scanner was an easy job and I wasn’t complaining. I wouldn’t be able to ask for preferential treatment again without saying why. I had a sinking feeling my part time work at Humble Homes would end shortly. I also faced the imminent loss of teaching jobs during the summer months.
With panic nibbling at the edge of my mind, I walked miles through the warehouse, exercising my legs and my thumb. Unfortunately, the mindless task, left my fertile imagination time to revisit sleeping with Marty. My mind probably went there because my body wanted to. My yearning ache to cuddle with him again, translated into some vivid images that kept my mind totally occupied while I worked.
When a row of shelving across the warehouse collapsed, I was jarred from my illicit imaginings. I sprinted down the aisles and across the floor to see what was what. Shit. It was a mess. I arrived in time to help extricate two employees from the wreckage. Neither was dead, both were banged up. Someone called for an ambulance which arrived right before I clocked off at seven.
I left the building exhausted. The adrenaline rush I’d experienced as I’d raced to the rescue, had fizzled to an end. Marty’s Hummer sitting in the parking lot should have pissed me off. Instead, I was profoundly grateful for its presence and for the man leaning against the driver’s side, arms crossed, waiting for me.
“Hey, I could have caught a bus for home,” I said when I reached the SUV.
“Figured I’d kill two birds with one stone,” he drawled. “Came to see if I can use your employee discount to buy a grill. What the hell happened in there?”
“Huh?”
He motioned toward the ambulance, the two stretchers, and the EMT’s loading one of them.
“Oh. Shelving collapsed. I was on the other side of the warehouse.” I felt immediately defensive as he frowned, studying me.
“Yes, you can use my discount.” I agreed quickly to change the subject, then wondered if I’d been maneuvered again. “You’re rich. You don’t need my discount to buy a grill,” I muttered.
“A penny saved is a penny spent elsewhere,” he disagreed. “I already picked out the grill. You need to go pay so I can get my discount.”
I opened my mouth to tell him I couldn’t afford a grill right now but closed it when he handed me a credit card.
“Which grill?” I asked as he drove around to the front of the store.
“They’re holding it for us. Smoke already gets a company discount. Add in your employee discount and we’re saving eighty bucks on this bad boy.”
I’d been working since three the afternoon before. I was hungry, and most of all tired. I wanted to punch him. Instead, I went back into the store, used his card, got the discount, returned with the sales receipt in my hand. “Paid for it.”
“I’ll take care of business. You rest.” He pointed at the Hummer, tailgate open, waiting. I climbed into my ride home, closed my eyes and dozed while he loaded his new toy. At some point, I slept because I woke up when he backed into my driveway and shut the Hummer off.
His arm was around me, my head resting on his chest, my arm around his waist. I’d drooled on his shirt. I saw the wet spot when I sat up.
“Sorry,” I murmured, scooting over the seat to get out. I headed for my bed and left him dealing with the box protruding from the back of his vehicle.
Chapter Twelve
Marty
“Bought an outdoor cooker,” I told Jack as soon as he picked up his phone. But I had other things on my mind as I assembled the grill.
“Is that right? What kind? Gas, charcoal, or wood?”
“One side uses charcoal or wood, the other side cooks with gas. The clerk sold me a tank of propane to go with it.” I’d arrived at the employee entrance too early, so I’d driven around the building and filled in the time checking out the store front wares—a long row of grills, every shape and size.
I’d needed an excuse for being at Holly’s place of employment, and grills offered a perfect reason. I’d already made my choice and had my card out ready for the buy when an ambulance streaked through the parking lot and circled to the back of the store. I’d left the clerk holding the sales ticket and promised to come back.
“What’s on the menu?” Jack’s question called me back to the immediate.
“Steaks. Buy a pile of thick cut. See if you can get some wholesale from Church.”
“He’ll cry.”
“Yeah. Invite him. Tell him I’ll wait till I see his bald head before I grill the first piece of meat.”
The truth was, I didn’t want to leave here. I’d had one of my paranoia fits when I’d seen the ambulance at her job. I’d driven around the building and jumped out of my ride, ready to infiltrate the E.M.T.’s before I’d spotted her coming out a different door.
“Had a scare. Before we go out of town, I need to get things settled. Bring some beer. Some food. We’ll talk.”
“I’ll call the guys. Are you telling your girl, or is this a surprise?”
My girl. I wish. I snorted at the idea. Before he ended the conversation, he managed to remind me I didn’t call the shots here. Guess it was time to test the limits of my lease.
I planned to tell her we were having company when she woke. The way she was under, I could see she was exhausted. No way was I waking her up. For a while I sat in the chair next to the bed and watched her sleep. I knew it broke several of her rules.
But, checking on her health was different. I wanted to make certain she wasn’t in a coma or unconscious. Her skin had a rosy bloom. Her lips were pursed in a half smile as if her dreams were sweet. She didn’t look sick. She looked asleep.
After I made sure she was breathing I noticed she barely moved under the light bedcovers. I mean her position didn’t shift at all. Since I floundered all over a mattress like a drowning whale, her stillness fascinated me.
Anyway, Jack arrived with supplies and I quit guarding her rest while we set up outside. When seating became a problem, we had to adjust, and the Hummer made a few trips in and out of the drive. It was a good thing she slept soundly. I’m guessing it was the music blaring that finally brought her awake.
Holly
My house had been invaded while I slept. I woke to the sound of voices, the smell of barbecued meat drifting in the air, and the startling realization that I wasn’t alone. I’d been totally wiped when I’d crashed. I vaguely remembered Marty’s grill purchase which seemed to answer the question of who’d taken over my backyard.
I lay in the bed, trying to decide my mood. Without question my renter was pushing the boundaries of our agreement. On the other hand, I wondered if he’d feed his landlord. My stomach growled to the beat of the music playing below.
I slid out of bed, smoothed the sheet
and comforter, plumped the pillow, and headed for the shower. Clean, hair dried, and dressed, I followed the aroma of charcoal and steak downstairs and to the kitchen where I paused to peer out the window.
Yep, I had company. Besides Marty, I counted six more big men plus Jack, Marty’s father-in-law, and Garret all standing around an ice filled barrel holding bottles of beer. Maybe because Megan sat next to her friend on a picnic bench attached to a long table holding covered bowls, plastic cutlery, napkins, and assorted two-liter bottles of soda, I didn’t freak.
I felt remarkably calm as I surveyed my backyard. A few new Adirondack chairs had been arranged in a semi-circle around the grill, and Harley-Jane occupied one of them. Several other unknown females sat in the others. I recognized Gable Matthews as one of the men drinking beer and talking to Marty.
While I watched, Church, a.k.a. the bartender from Church’s Bar & Grill, carried a large platter filled with steaks and set it in the middle of the table.
Two children and a woman I’d never seen before had been swinging. When the main course arrived, the mom hopped from the swing and led the boy and girl toward the men. One of the big guys met them, lifted the boy onto his shoulders, and picked up the girl. Slinging an arm around the woman, he herded her toward the table. The crowd converged.
I wondered if there’d be anything left if I decided to fight my way to the food. When Marty looked at the window and caught me peering outside, he motioned me to join them.
Huh, nice of him to invite me to the party. When I remained fixed in front of the window, he left the group of men and strode toward the backdoor.
“I’ve got a plate with your name on it,” he growled as soon as he entered the kitchen.
If I intended to complain, now was the time. I turned to face him, casually leaning against the sink as I met his gaze. His expression changed.
“Come here,” he said gruffly.
Geez. My nipples went on point. What the hell is this? “Why?” I stalled. So much for my aloof indifference. Lust instead of blood pumped through my veins, heat pooled low in my belly, and my womb literally clenched.