by Karen Renee
Standing next to her cubicle, he wasn’t surprised when Bobby sidled up next to him. “Do we need to be concerned about that man coming here?”
Beast mulled it over, and he was nearly certain Grind would not come into an office like this, but it didn’t mean Beast wouldn’t stretch the truth to get Janie safe.
“Can’t say he wouldn’t, but if you can spare her for a few days it would definitely keep him out of your hair.”
Janie put her hands on her curvy hips. “I can’t afford to–”
Beast reflexively leaned into her. “What you can’t afford is to have that asshole take you right off the street next time. And seein’ as he warned you this time, I got no doubt he’ll snatch your ass the next.”
“That’s crazy,” Janie started, but her boss cut her off.
“It’s not crazy. Take the rest of the week off. Come back next Monday.”
“Bobby, please. I feel like a flake if I take off. It was bad enough needing last Friday off, and–”
The stout man crossed his arms on his broad chest. “And we knew you had obligations. In the time you have been here, you have proven you can handle whatever Quinton and I throw at you. Quinton alone normally scares off the good ones. The fact you can deal with him makes me more than tolerant of you needing to stay safe.”
“All right, you heard the man. Let’s go, Clumsy.”
“Stop calling me Clumsy while I’m at work!” A frustrated expression screwed up her eyes and nose. “Geez, I just realized I don’t know your first name! You must have a regular name, instead of,” she paused to grimace, “Beast?”
He chuckled and it sounded menacing, even to his ears. “Do, but it’s much more entertaining listenin’ to you struggle with what to call me.”
She bent over her desk, making a frustrated “Grr” sound, and Beast smirked at his boots.
“See you Monday, Janie,” Bobby said, and went back to the conference room.
She slung her purse over her shoulder. “Well, you can be on your way now.”
He smiled. “My way is going your way. So, you headed back to your condo?”
“Probably, but you’re not–”
Beast leaned toward her. “Don’t tell me what I’m not doin’ woman. And pay attention. My brothers told me not to come over here, and I did. You tell me not to follow you back to your place, you’re wasting your breath, because I’m comin’ with you.”
Janie
On the way to the condo, I called Andrea, but she wouldn’t give up Beast’s real name. While I was waiting on a traffic light to change, my phone rang, showing Liar’s name.
“Hi, Liar, what’s up?”
I could hear the smile in his voice. “Not much, Janie. Andi tells me you’re after my cousin’s real name.”
“Yes, but I understand if it’s information I shouldn’t have or something. I don’t want to cause a problem betwee–”
“It’s David Huntley, hon. And just so you know, you should call him Davy, he loves that.”
I nearly snorted. “Here’s something to know about me, Liar. I was born at night, but not last night. I’ve never met a man named David who preferred to be called Davy.”
“It was worth a shot. Sounds like you’re drivin’, so I’ll let you get back to it. Later.”
Ten minutes later, Beast followed me into the parking lot of the complex. His head was on a swivel as he scanned the area, for Grind I had to imagine, but I thought it was outlandish. It reminded me how protective these bikers could be, so I let it go and punched the code in for the lobby door.
Upstairs, Beast divested me of my keys and opened the door, and closed it behind me.
Setting the keys on the counter, he said, “We’re headed out of town.”
That was taking things a little too far. “You cannot be serious. Not only have you made my new boss give me four days off —but now, I’m supposed to go out of town. With you.”
I put too much emphasis on ‘you’ and I feared I might have offended him.
“When’s the last time your toes were in the sand?” he asked.
“Do what?”
“The beach, the Gulf, hell, a lake might even do. When’s the last time you put toes in the sand?”
My look was stern. “Beast, I’m strawberry blonde and I got the corresponding complexion for that.”
“What’s your hair got to do with it?” he asked with a tone I couldn’t put my finger on. I looked at him dumbfounded. The roguish grin surfaced. “Call it sex on the beach for a reason, Country Club.”
He let that hang and I knew he was trying to rile me.
After a moment he spoke. “You can walk the beach at night and not burn your skin or earn another freckle, even if that’d only make you sexier.”
“Freckles aren’t sexy.”
“Tell that to Sawyer,” he muttered.
My brows furrowed and then I chuckled. “Are you referencing Lost right now?”
“Yep,” he said opening my fridge. “Christ, woman. No wonder you think that quesadilla was the best. You got nothing to eat.”
“I do too. I have salad and —”
“And, you can stop right there. That ain’t food. There a sub shop close? I’m feelin’ some pastrami.”
I think I love you, I thought reflexively.
He threw his head back and laughed. Loud.
“What’s funny?”
“I ask for pastrami and you think you love me? That’s fuckin’ hysterical. Oughta take more than sliced beef to make you love me.”
“Damn it, David,” I snapped, and he froze.
“How’d you get my name?”
I fought grinning with triumph, but finally, finally, I had a leg up on him. And I liked that.
“Does it matter? Cat’s out of the bag. To answer your question, the best pastramis are close by, and FYI, they close up at four. Or, we could go another two miles to Firehouse.”
He grunted. “Wanna try the best place when I have more time to enjoy it with you. So, Firehouse it is. And don’t think you got over on me. I’ll find out how you found out soon enough.”
“Well, back to your original topic. What’s my toes in the sand got to do with anything?”
“I’m takin’ you to the Gulf.”
My mind raced. Did he mean Biloxi? That was on the Gulf, but I really didn’t want to go eight hours away. “What? Where? As in Biloxi?”
Shooting me a wry grin, he shook his head. “That’d be fun. ’Specially if you could ride me that long, but we’re headed to Sarasota.”
My breath nearly hitched at him mentioning me riding him, but surely he misspoke and meant to say ‘ride with me.’ I quickly responded. “Really? Why?”
“Why not? But, mainly, my Gran left me and Li a condo down there. Not on the water like this, but close enough.”
I opened my mouth to ask him more about this place, but his phone rang.
“Gotta take this,” he said, and walked to the other side of the room. “Yo, Volt.” His jaw clenched, the rest of his face set like stone. “Shit. That’s right. I’ll be there at three. There anything else?”
I exhaled and tried not to listen in, but then my phone rang. The display indicated it was Trent. I thought about letting it go to voicemail, but answered it instead.
“Hello, Trent.”
“Janie. Are you okay?”
He actually sounded concerned, and it surprised me. “I’m fine, Trent. Why wouldn’t I be?”
“No reason, really,” he answered too quickly, and I knew he was lying.
“Should I be concerned about something? Some sort of threat to you that might—”
“No, Janie. Don’t be ridiculous. I was just checking on you.” He continued lying.
Beast was off the phone by the time I asked if I should be concerned, so he was standing right in front of me when I ended my call.
“What’d he say?”
“He was ‘concerned,’ but I know he was lying. Would the man who hit me have told Trent?”
/>
“Bet your ass he would. Especially if it lights a fire under Trent’s ass.”
“But Trent doesn’t care about me.”
Beast dipped his chin down at me. “Called you, didn’t he?”
“Yeah, but I could tell he was lying.”
“And he wouldn’t be able to say the same of you?”
He had a point so I shut up.
“Yeah,” he muttered.
“We’re separated, though.”
Beast shook his head. “Don’t know your man, but he’s man enough to win you the first time, he’s gonna give a shit you were hit. Nobody likes a man beating a woman. It’s his woman, it’s even worse.”
I nodded. “And you rushed to the office, why?”
“You know why.”
“But at the bar you said–”
“At the bar I didn’t know I would crave another kiss from you for the next forty-eight hours. At the bar, you hadn’t been brutally backhanded by a MC president.”
I squinted. “How would you know he’s a MC president. I don’t even know his name.”
“Blood and a few prospects watched the parking lot at that bowling alley. Saw Trent meet with Grind, President of the Leathernecks.”
“Oh, no,” I whispered.
He shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. I hate to say this, babe, but I’m gonna have to skip the pastrami. That call was Volt informing me what I thought was happening at four o’clock is actually happening earlier. I don’t know what time I’ll get back here, but–”
“You don’t need to ‘get back here,’ Beast.”
His impatience was nearly palpable in his look. “I’m comin’ back here. Your fancy gate and security key pad at the lobby door is nothin’ to MC guys like me and Grind. No way you’re acquainted with how to fire a gun, so, I’ll be back, but it might be late.”
“Okay,” I whispered.
His face softened, and I told myself to ignore it. Of course, I failed. He came to me. “Kiss me, Janie.”
My breath caught. “I can’t do that, Beast.”
He shrugged a shoulder. “Fine. I’ll kiss you.”
I should’ve moved and prevented him from kissing me, but I couldn’t help myself. He was good at it, and even though this one was short and sweet, it was teasing because it included several touches of our tongues.
When he backed away, he smirked. “Not sure what I like better, fact you haven’t said any form of ‘dammit’ to me, or the look on your face right now.”
I pressed my lips together, but he had already turned and walked out the door.
CHAPTER 14
Janie
BEAST HAD INTERRUPTED my lunch around one in the afternoon. We were back at my place just after two. So, rather than eat a full lunch, I snacked on nachos and other junk while Beast went out and did whatever it was he had to do. The notion of going out of town took root in my mind, and I was quickly warming to the idea. Seeing as Beast was as pushy, maybe even pushier than Liar, he would insist I pack a bag. I hit the bedroom. and dragged out my smallest suitcase.
“What are you thinking?” I asked my reflection in the dresser mirror. It was an older dresser my dad insisted on gifting me. I hadn’t known he had a couple other properties he had leased furnished, but more-recent tenants had their own furniture, so Dad was forced to get a storage unit on the off-chance he needed his furniture.
Then I cocked my head at the suitcase, thinking about the fact he followed me here on his bike. No way my Samsonite was going in a saddlebag. Flinging the luggage toward the wall, it flopped open, but I didn’t bother to close it. My stomach growled, and I dragged my fingers through my hair in frustration.
Meandering out to the kitchen, I saw six o’clock had rolled around and I needed an actual full meal. Opening my fridge, I realized Beast had been mistaken before. I had food. The food I had simply required cooking. Checking the crisper, I found nearly half a sleeve of celery, some onion, and asparagus. If Beast insisted on hitting the road, I would hate to let my produce go bad, so I pulled it all, and a four-pack of chicken breasts. Even if Beast didn’t show up or want to eat my left-overs, I could always freeze it.
At my pantry, I pulled out a few more key ingredients and my Pyrex baking dish. Cooking almost always settled my nerves, and by the time I had the chicken, onion, and celery mixture set in the oven, I realized I hadn’t thought about any of my crazy problems.
Doubling back to the fridge, I yanked out a bottle of chardonnay and poured myself a glass. The chicken was going to take close to an hour to bake, so with my wine and my cell in hand, I went out to the patio to read on my phone and occasionally watch the river. It was getting close to dusk, and it was one of the only times I wished the property was on the other side of the river. If it were, then I’d be watching the sunset on the river, rather than imagining the huge orb setting based on how the water was glistening. My finger hovered over my reading app, when it hit me I hadn’t talked to my mother in a long while.
I pulled up her contact info and called her. She answered on the first ring.
“It’s about time my only daughter called me.”
“Geez, mom, I’m sorry. It’s been a hectic couple of weeks.”
“I’ll just bet it has been hectic,” she chided.
“Goodness. Thanks for the guilt, mom.”
I heard the smile in her voice. “It is the gift that keeps on giving, dear.”
My eyes rolled to my eyebrows. “You have officially spent too much time in Boca. The old ladies are rubbing off on you.”
“Janie! Be nice,” she admonished.
I chuckled. “You know I didn’t mean it that way.”
“Your father tells me you’ve moved to his condo.”
“Yes. You two sure seem to talk a lot these days.”
She chuckled mirthlessly. “When my daughter doesn’t call, I’m left with no other recourse.”
“Mom! I said I’m sorry. How have you been?” I tried to change the subject.
“Enh. Pretty good, when I’m not worried about you. My bridge partner and I have been on a winning streak.”
“That’s good, right?”
“It would be, except you know how these retirees can be. They got nothin’ else to occupy their minds, so the fact Phyllis and I can win week after week at duplicate is damn near scandalous.”
“I wish that were my biggest problem,” I deadpanned.
“I do too, Honey-bunch. But, I gotta say, that condo your father put you in is top-notch, so I’m thinking you’re heading in the right direction. So, subject change completed, what’s new with you? Joe told me you were job-hunting so you could pay him the HOA fees. Though why you’d want to do that when you don’t have to, is beyond me.”
I shook my head because she would say that. “Mom, at the rate I’m going, it’s a pretty sure thing I’m gonna have to make my own way. And you should be proud of me for that. I don’t want to be any more of a drain on Dad than I have to be.” Even if to hear him say it, I’d been a drain on him since birth!
“Yes, well, have you landed a job? That’s something your father hasn’t been able to tell me, so how about I hear it from you?”
Jesus, take the wheel. Actually, no, I’d rather have Jesus at shotgun so when I ran it into the ditch He’d just take me home! I thought things were better after my parents separated, but I was beginning to wonder if they shouldn’t have suffered through together, especially since it would’ve made this part of my life so much easier.
“Mom. Seriously. Lay off the guilt, please. Yes, I started a new job last week, but I’ve been reluctant to say anything about it because of all the damn engagements I’ve had to stick to as Trent’s wife.”
“His...his wife,” Mom spluttered. “I thought you were divorcing?”
I sighed. “Yes, but I don’t want every Sally, Sue, and Sarah to know about it. So I’ve been–”
“Bowing to that bastard’s decrees.”
I closed my eyes in semi-defeat. “No, Mom
. Not his decrees. I’m keeping up the charade, as it were,” I muttered as the scene with Terri came to mind. She knew Trent and I were over, but I had to wonder if she’d broadcast that or not.
My mother sighed, but it was far quieter than anything I could pull off. I knew she was disappointed.
“Anyway, I’m working as a project coordinator-slash-assistant at a local information technology firm. It’s been pretty good work so far. I even found myself dealing with Monty. You remember him, from high school?”
“Monty?” she asked, her tone disapproving. It softened when she asked, “Wait. You mean, Montel Morgan?”
I smirked. “Close. Montel Mondrian, which is why I called him ‘Monty-Mon.’ Anyway, Monty’s running his own business and called on the firm I’m working for to help him out with some point of sale software and infrastructure.”
I could hear the smile in my mother’s voice even if it was clear it wasn’t smile-worthy material to her. “All right, dear. None of that means much to me, but I’m pleased as punch that you’ve found a dear friend again after so many years. I’ll trust you to keep working if it’s what you really feel you need to do.”
I nearly choked on my need to sigh at my mother. She just didn’t understand that not every woman, hell, these days very damn few women, would even want, let alone be able to find, a man to support her rather than work for her living.
Nothing for it. I grinned so it would sound believable as I said, “Thanks, Mom. I’m glad you approve.”
“Now, I didn’t say that,” she chided.
I chuckled. “No, you didn’t. But I love you anyway, Mom.”
“Good,” she drawled in a lower tone. Then, “But I love you more, my Janie.”
“Love you,” I whispered. “Bye, Momma.”
“Bye, honey,” she said and we hung up.
WHEN I WENT BACK INSIDE to refill my wine glass, I saw half an hour had gone by. The living room-dining room combo was filled with the aroma of chicken and I remembered the asparagus needed to go in the oven, too. The spears would only need seventeen minutes at the most, but I had to trim them and toss them with oil, salt and pepper first. No sooner did I have the asparagus on a baking sheet and in the oven than Beast walked in my door, free as you please.
