by Naomi West
Josh’s chocolate eyes narrowed, his little fists jammed into his pockets. His lip wobbled for a second before he visibly swallowed back the tears he’d been holding in for what must have been years. “I’m okay. I don’t remember her face no more. It’s been a long time since she died.”
I resumed my grocery shopping, sighing with relief as I found a selection of slightly dented cans for fifty percent off. This would save me a ton.
We made it down two more aisles before Josh spoke again. He was still sulking, but he looked more thoughtful than irritated when I turned back to him again. “If you ever, you know, what to talk about something, I’ll listen, too.”
The grin on my face widened, tears pricking at the edges of my eyes. “That’s very kind of you, Josh. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
“So, do you like living with your dad?” I probed again, unable to stop myself.
Josh nodded vigorously. “Dad’s big and strong and loyal and brave. All the stuff I wanna be when I’m big like him.” He lifted both of his arms up, elbows bent, and flexed, looking like he was trying to model for a muscle competition. “He’s not home much, but when he is, he’s always talking about the Devil’s Edge. I want to be just like him.”
The hero-worship in Josh’s eyes frightened me; if it was anyone else he worshiped so completely, I wouldn’t be worried. But it was Creed. Creed the criminal who destroyed my workplace and got me fired. Creed who beat a man bloody right in front of me as I watched. No, Creed was not a man who deserved such hero-worship. The bad guy never deserved it. And even though his bad boy nature lit my blood on fire, he didn’t deserve my desire either.
“I’m going to grow up big and strong, too. Pearl says so.”
I forced myself to smile down at him as I grabbed a couple of cans of fruit off of the shelf and stuffed them into my basket. “Who is Pearl?”
“She’s a lady at the Devil’s Edge. She’s smart.” Josh pointed to his forehead. “Real smart. My dad says so.”
Josh rattled on about some of the other gang members who liked him, his face brightening as he chatted about how much they all liked him. I just nodded and made appreciative noises as he spoke, listening as Josh was obviously not used to being listened to. He seemed to brighten as he spoke, even though all of his words turned my blood to ice.
We rounded the corner again into the cereal and magazine aisle. I glanced through the books, wondering if I have enough to spare for something new to read. Now that I was just babysitting, I had a lot more free time than I ever had working at the diner. As much as I hated it admit it, maybe Creed did me a favor when he trashed that place.
I glanced over the titles of the books in the bargain bin, hoping for something interesting. Luckily for me, my eyes lit upon a copy of Treasure Island. Its cover was a little bent up and it was marked at two dollars. I was pretty sure I could spare the two bucks, and it gave me an idea. Maybe I could read this to Josh. Perhaps it would make him realize that just because you idolized someone, it doesn’t mean that person isn’t going to betray you.
It would be a hard lesson, but maybe Josh would pick up on it. Despite his lack of education, he was a quick study and a smart boy. If I could just get him to go to school…
We checked out, Josh ecstatic that we were finally leaving the store. He bounced around inside of the checkout line, keeping close to me even as he danced in place and tapped his shoes noisily on the laminate floors.
It took us only a few minutes to check out, catch the bus home, and unpack the few groceries I’d managed to pick up. They all came home with me; there was no point in putting it away in Creed’s cupboards. He didn’t have a working stove either, nor did he own any cooking pots or pans.
I started a pot of chili on the stove, throwing in all of the fresh vegetables I had been able to buy today. Use the fresh ones first, then move on to the canned ones once they are gone. The kid fumbled around in my place, checking out every nook and cranny of my room. I don’t know what he was searching for, but I let him play. It kept him quiet, occupied, and mostly out of the way.
After supper, I offered to read out loud to him. Josh looked skeptical at first, obviously wondering if it would be more entertaining to just go back to his TV. Despite everything, though, I managed to get him to sit long enough to start the first chapter. Soon, he was staring at me, his mouth gaping. He was so engrossed in the story that Josh even forgot to tap. He just sat there, staring, his little brown eyes wide with wonder.
I did my best to help, giving the characters unique voices and trying to read the exciting parts faster than the slower parts. It was as quiet as I had ever seen him, and he seemed to be enjoying the story so far. I wondered how he would take the inevitable betrayal, when we got there.
“Did people used to talk like that?” Josh asked when I paused for a sip of water.
I smiled. “I’m not sure. I suppose so; I don’t see why he would have put it in the book if they didn’t.”
“Well, I think they sound like some kind of weird movie instead of real people,” Josh answered, his feet banging loudly against the carpeted floor. He was lying on my bed as I sat in the only chair in the room.
Suddenly a loud knock came from the door, and both Josh and I jumped. “Josh! Come on.” I gasped as I recognized Creed’s voice, even through the door. I wondered how long he’d been standing there, listening to me read. I hadn’t heard him approach.
My heart thundered in my chest as I went to unlock the door, letting Creed in to herd his rambunctious kid home.
“Goodbye, Ivy,” Josh said as he headed towards the door. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Goodbye!” I waved to him, trying to keep my eyes away from his father. But he was a like a magnet for my gaze, and I couldn’t help but steal a few glances up at that beautiful face. A shiver slid down my spine as our eyes met.
I wasn’t sure if it was my imagination or not, but I could have sworn those gray eyes were much warmer today than usual. A polite nod then they were gone, leaving me breathless, my blood boiling, just from that little look.
I need to find a new job, and quick. Anything to get me away from these two, before I do something really stupid.
Like sleeping with a gang member. Warm, wonderful shivers slid down my spine at that thought, and I groaned unhappily into my now empty apartment.
Chapter Twelve
Creed
I stood next to the Boss, keeping my eyes on everything around him. We walked through the big archway into the Bones, a dive bar that catered to the less–than-reputable. Lucky for me, my demoted status was temporary; the Boss had me on his personal bodyguard staff tonight.
It felt good to be back in my proper place instead of scrubbing the streets for information. It also helped that Kelly, the fanatic bastard, was in a fantastic mood, his lips lifted in an evil-looking smile that sent shivers down my spine. He was happy about all of this shit. It would either get him killed (and everyone else at the Devil’s Edge) or would make him incredibly powerful and rich. I wasn’t a fan of either idea.
We took a table in the corner, keeping a windowless wall at our backs and our eyes towards the bar around us. “Oh yes, this is a good day,” Kelly was saying, that stupid grin splitting his ugly mug. “Everything is going so well; Christine is ready to get product in here by next month.” And the Boss was off, talking to everyone and no one at the same time. He expected everyone to listen with a smile as he talked about signing the death warrant of everyone here.
But we were all of us trained as bodyguards, and we would do our jobs. No matter what.
A waitress came around, bringing out waters. It was pretty plain from the way that she was dressed and the way she eyed the Boss that she was on the menu just as much as the food was.
The Boss winked at her. “Hello, there gorgeous. Can you get us all cheeseburgers and fries and beers all around? On my tab, sweetheart.”
“Anything yah say, Kelly,” the woman responded, winking
back. She bent over the table, obviously showing off her breasts as they nearly tumbled out of her low-cut uniform. “I’ll be back in a few with the beers. Bottles or pitchers?”
“Bottles, you sweet piece of ass,” Kelly yelled back, his laugh echoing through the whole bar.
The waitress disappeared. I didn’t like this place; it was too easy for predators to be hiding in the nooks and crannies of the dive. Patrick, who was sitting beside me, silent and grave, seemed to be thinking the same thing. He wasn’t quite a bodyguard, not officially, but he made a good one whenever Kelly was out of the hideout. Patrick took all of our safety very seriously; it shocked me when he’d had so little opposition to Kelly’s cartel plan. But I held my tongue, did my job, even as those niggling little thoughts kept returning.
He doesn’t deserve your loyalty. He’s an idiot and is going to drive the Edge into the ground. Kelly doesn’t deserve to be leader. And if Patrick doesn’t stand up to him, he doesn’t deserve his position either.
You need to get out.
Those thoughts clouded my mind, filling up all of the empty spaces and pushing everything else out of the way. It was almost enough. I almost didn’t notice that the waitress was a different woman. Almost didn’t notice that her uniform was too big and was held on almost entirely by her posture.
I was so far gone, I almost didn’t notice that the new waitress was wearing the same name tag as the old one. Or the little spot of blood on the front of her shirt.
My eyes trailed up to the deadpan expression on her face as she very carefully handed each one of us a bottle of beer. But the other bodyguards were looking elsewhere. They were looking for a different kind of threat, one that could come in with guns blazing.
I stood and grabbed the waitress’s wrist in one, fluid motion. She froze, her eyes scanning my face. Without looking, I swiped the bottle of beer from in front of Kelly off of the table and held it out to her. “Drink it,” I said, my voice as firm as my grip on her wrist.
“No, I- I have to get back to work,” she whispered, her eyes filling with panicked fear. She wouldn’t even look at the beer or me. Her eyes were locked with my collarbones peeking out from the edges of my collared shirt. “I should--”
“You will drink this. Unless you’ve poisoned it?”
By now, Kelly and everyone at the table had gone silent, all of them staying far back from their beers. The whole dive had turned to watch, their eyes cold and deadly.
“No! No, I--” The girl tried to pull her wrist free, but I didn’t budge. “I didn’t do anything wrong, please!”
“Then drink with us,” I said, holding the beer out to her lips. “Just a sip, to prove to us you didn’t poison it.”
The girl was crying by now, her whole body quivering as she fought to keep the beer bottle’s lip as far away from her lips as possible. “Okay, okay! It’s poisoned!” she screamed. “Just let me go!”
But there was no letting her go now. Everyone at my table was now standing, death and ice in their eyes. “Patrick, my friend. She’s yours.”
I held my hand out to him, and one of the bodyguards snapped her up, dragging her outside as Patrick followed. After a few moments of silence, the bar returned to its normal noise.
“We should go,” I told Kelly, keeping my eyes locked on the crowd around us. “I don’t think she was working alone.”
Kelly’s eyes were practically glowing. “If you think so. If they are trying to murder me, it only because I’m doing great things. Great things! No one will ever forget my name after this deal goes through.” In spite of that strange speech, he stood up, his Cheshire grin spreading ever wider. Soon, it would consume his whole face. “Great things,” he repeated.
Why did you save him? If Kelly dies before the cartel moves in, the deal will fall through. Patrick wouldn’t have the balls to sign any of the papers; it would make him a target like it has done for Kelly.
I stared down at the floor, my head full and my skull throbbing from all of the noise bouncing around inside of it. I could have saved us. All I had to do was keep my mouth shut.
So why didn’t I?
That thought haunted me, followed me around for the rest of the day. I was a fool. And I was thinking it as I mounted the stairs back to my motel room. My feet carried me down the hall, even as my mind was occupied. But when I looked up, I noticed my feet had taken me down too far. I was standing front of Ivy’s door, not my own.
Why did I come here? But I already knew the answer. I could feel the frustration and worry burning my up under my skin. And I wanted to take it out on Ivy’s flesh. I wanted to carve my name into her skin with my teeth. I wanted to throw her against the wall and pierce her body. I bet she would be tight and dripping wet.
And even worse, I was pretty sure that good-girl Ivy wanted me just as badly.
Fuck. I lifted my hand anyway to her door. I couldn’t seem to stop myself.
I knocked. After a few moments of silence, the locks on the door clicked and squeaked and groaned. The door parted from the frame ever so slightly, giving me a glimpse at those angelic brown eyes and the messy tumble of mocha-colored curls.
“Oh, Creed,” she said, her eyes instantly dropping to the floor. Was that fear or desire in her gaze, or was it a mix of both? Her fingers gripped the door so hard her knuckles were white. “Josh was sleepy, so I sent him back to your place to nap. He’s still there. If you--”
I pressed my hand against the door of her motel room, pushing her and the door back inch by inch. Even as she braced herself against it to keep it closed, I overpowered her, my hunger overwhelming my sense.
Suddenly, she backed away from the door, her eyes too wide and her mouth parted. She was panting like she’d just sprinted for the bus, her face darkening several shades as she blushed. I could feel my body harden in response to her fear, her desire, those too-wide eyes questioning me as I entered her room and closed the door behind me.
“Uh, Creed, I--” But she stopped talking. I backed her into a corner. Her face was doused in fear, her eyes too wide and tracking every single one of my movements. She looked like a rabbit being stalked by a fox. And there was no escape for her.
“Ivy,” I whispered, lifting my hand to brush my fingers over her cheek. “Has anyone ever told you how beautiful you are?”
She gaped at me, her mouth working but no sound coming out. Before she could catch her breath or find her voice, I was kissing her, my mouth locked over hers like a vacuum. It felt like gravity, an inevitable twisting of events that got us here, and not a single thing in the world could have stopped it.
Her lips were pliant under mine, her whole body tense and frozen. I knew I shouldn’t be kissing her, I shouldn’t even be in this room with her, but I couldn’t seem to stop.
Reluctant hands lifted up and wrapped around my shoulders, the warmth of her pressing closer. I slid my tongue between her lips and she bit me, her eyes wild.
And that broke me.
All control went out of the window. My hands explored her back and hips without control, my mouth pressed so hard to hers neither of us could breathe. I was holding onto her so tightly, drowning in the taste of her lips, in the caresses of her fingers, that my mind and body were no longer under my control.
I wrapped my arms close around her quivering body, pressing her hard against the line of my burning, aching body. I explored her mouth with tongue, lips, and teeth, pulling her ever closer until neither of us could breathe.
Ivy looked like an angel, but she kissed like a demon.
As soon as her desire overtook her fear and her surprise, Ivy began to battle back, her body pressing harder against mine. Her teeth and lips clashed against mine like she was starved, her mouth hungry and hard against my own. Her nails bit into my shoulder through the thick skin of my leather jacket. One of her legs wrapped erotically around mine, pulling my body closer and setting my blood on fire.
It was like a ticking time bomb between us and nothing could stop the coming explosion
. We would clash, wrestle, and burn, our desires explosive and all-consuming.
Until a little voice in the back of my head decided to intervene.
This is a terrible idea.
Ivy felt so fragile under my hands, so light. A flash of her angelic eye flashed across my mind and stumbled back from her. I was across the room in seconds, breathing heavily as I stared at her. She didn’t seem to be breathing at all, her hair disheveled and her lips bruised and swollen. I was too rough for her.
We both froze, uncertain. “I--” I started, but it came out more like a croak. So I cleared my throat and tried again. “I’m sorry. I’ll go.”