by Mika Lane
Nodding, Dakini sniffled, leaning back against the alley’s brick wall.
Jake came back down the alley holding her bag in his hand. “It was on the curb. Probably right where you fell.” He returned to sitting. “How’d you end up in the alley?”
“I was afraid they’d come back, so I hid. I was so scared.” She looked down. “I didn’t want to go in the restaurant for help.” She touched her raw knees and winced.
Jake pressed his lips together hard. “If I ever see that piece of shit in my bar again, I’ll make sure he becomes very familiar with my closed fist. Right in his fucking face.”
Jake had run into the restaurant with a glass of water for Dakini. When he returned, she gulped it down as he took a seat next to her on the ground.
“I don’t need to tell you this could have been way worse,” he said, as she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.
Her voice cracked. “It has been worse.”
“What?” Jake asked. “What do you mean?”
“This isn’t the first time.” She looked down at her scraped knees, sighing. Her hands trembled. “A few years ago, when I was in college, I was walking home after a party. I was jumped.” She’d shared this with only a handful of people. “I hadn’t been much of a drinker before then.”
Her voice was low. “It was a guy I knew. Not very well, but I knew him. He punched me in the face with a closed fist, knocking me out. When I came to, I was behind some bushes and he was pulling his pants up. He left me there. My panties were missing, and I was bleeding.” Covering her face with one hand, her shoulders shook.
“Holy shit, Dakini. Oh my god.”
“Yeah,” she said, lifting her head to wipe her tears. She cleared her throat and tried to steady her voice. “Sometimes when I drink, I can’t stop. I don’t want to stop. For a brief period of time, the horrible memory disappears. But then—” she gestured toward her injured knees and the alley where she’d taken refuge, “—look where I end up. I know the drinking makes things worse, but it’s almost as if I want to make them worse…”
It was like she was stuck on a hamster wheel, running and running and never really moving forward, never making any progress. Unable to get off the damn thing. Shaking her head with an ironic laugh, she added, “And it keeps me from going out with nice guys like you.”
“Is that why—”
“Yeah,” she interrupted. Taking a deep breath, she continued, “I haven’t really dated anyone since. Had my share of flings, but that’s it.”
“Jesus,” Jake started. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” His voiced cracked as he looked down at his hands. “Something similar happened to my sister. She’s never been the same, and truthfully, neither have I.”
“Shit. I’m so sorry.” She took his hand.
He leaned his head against the wall where they sat and looked up at the sky as if he were someplace else for a moment. Then he eyed his watch.
“Look,” Jake said. “Let me check with the other bartender about handling the rest of the night on his own. Then I can drop you home, or if you’d rather Uber, I can call you one. Whichever you’re more comfortable with. Just leave your car here till tomorrow.”
He got to his feet, reaching his hands to help her up. Dakini grabbed them, wincing as she stood. With an arm around her waist, he helped her to the back of the building where there was more light. He set her on the milk crate he’d been using as a chair.
As she bent to sit, her knees protested the movement, and she leaned heavily on him.
He frowned. “I’m going to get a wet cloth for your face and knees, too. Be right back.”
Dakini wobbled back and forth between feeling like a massive loser, and a girl special enough to be looked after by a nice guy. Shit, shit, shit.
Returning, Jake carried several damp cloths as well as a big bottle of water. He handed one to Dakini for her face as he dabbed at her knees.
“Ouch, that stings.” Flinching, she pushed his hand away.
“Sorry. Look, we need to get you home. Are you comfortable with a ride from me or would you rather get an Uber?”
“I’d like to ride with you.” She looked up at him and paused. “Can we go to your place?”
“Sure, we can go to my place. My sister lives with me, though. You okay with that?”
“If it’s okay with her. Do you think you ought to call her first?”
“Nah, she’s probably in bed right now,” he said. “I’m gonna let the guys know I’m leaving. Be right back.” He dashed inside the restaurant.
Fuck it. If he wanted to help, if he was going to be kind, if he was going to treat her like a human being, she was going to accept it. Graciously and humbly. She was going to eat it up, revel in it, and believe she deserved it. Because for way too long, her confidence had been shot to shit. And she was done.
Chapter 8
Moments later Jake arrived in his Jeep, having maneuvered it down the alley so Dakini didn’t have to walk far. With his help, she stiffly climbed into the passenger side.
When he’d hopped into the driver’s seat, she looked at him with a little smile. “Thank you for being so nice to me. Especially after I was such a horrible bitch.”
“It’s okay.” He backed down the alley and headed for the twisty mountain roads to his house.
Trying to relax in the loud, bouncy Jeep, Dakini looked out her window and watched the stars follow them as they began navigating switchbacks up a steep hill. “You live on Mount Tam?”
“I do. My sister and I have a great little place with views of the city. It’s really pretty amazing.”
“Nice. How long have you lived with your sister?”
“Just a couple years. She’s taking a break from the family business. I guess just like I am.”
“Family business? What’s the family business?”
“Hospitality.”
“No kidding. Restaurants?”
“Yeah. Restaurants and hotels.”
Restaurants?
Hotels?
“What kind of hotels?” Dakini asked.
“Uh, well…the Relais hotels.” He hesitated. “Including the one where we had lunch the other day.”
Her head snapped in his direction, and in the streetlight, she saw what she figured was a guilty smile.
“Wait a minute. You told me you’d never been there.”
“Yeah...I lied. I’m sorry. I just didn’t want to get into it. It would have overshadowed our lunch. I should have told you, though.” He looked like he felt a little shitty.
“So you own that hotel?”
He’d probably worked there every summer as a kid.
“My family does. My grandfather started with one hotel, and my father runs the company today with other family members. I was in charge of all the restaurants before I took my break. My sister was in the finance department.”
“What’s she doing now?” Dakini asked.
“Traveling and teaching yoga. She loves it. I suspect she’s not going back to the corporate world.”
“Can she do that?”
“We each have a little money from the family to fall back on. Most of us work, but it’s nice having a safety net in case we want out.” Jake swerved to avoid a nocturnal critter strolling in the road.
The dizzying twists and turns up Mount Tam were doing a job on Dakini. She cracked opened her window and leaned back in the seat, sucking deep breaths to quell her churning stomach.
Good lord. This down-to-earth guy with tattoos, a man bun, and motorcycle boots owned hotels?
“Hey, you okay?” He negotiated what must have been their tenth switchback.
Dakini grabbed the handle above her door. “Yeah, I’ll be fine. I just wanted some fresh air.”
Turning off the main road, the Jeep pulled onto a narrow drive where giant redwood trees grew to the very edge of the asphalt. They created a sort of natural guardrail against the steep canyon on the other side that, in the dark night, seemed to drop into infinity.
The evening air was scented with wild rosemary, in addition to the odor of a local skunk that must have traveled through not long before. The canopy of trees towered above a hundred feet in the air, the foliage so thick it almost completely obscured the night’s stars.
What a wild little paradise.
The Jeep made a final sharp right up a driveway that would have been too steep to navigate by foot. It leveled out at the top where they arrived at the front of a mid-century, modern home with glass spanning the entire facade.
Jake parked and walked around the car to open Dakini’s door.
Cringing, she straightened her painful knees, took his arm, and left the Jeep to climb stairs to a large deck.
“You okay?” Jake put an arm around her waist to steady her.
“My knees. Just a little stiff.”
Screeching crickets silenced as Dakini and Jake walked through their evening mating ritual. But, as soon as they’d passed, the critters returned to their love songs. A rustle in the woods revealed the white tail of a deer disappearing into the darkness. The wild setting felt odd for a city girl, but also strangely welcoming. Dakini was out of place and at home all at the same time.
From the deck, she turned to see the twinkling lights of San Francisco through the trees. They crossed to the home’s front door, which opened to more stairs and then a great room with soaring ceilings crisscrossed by wooden beams. A minimalist decor revealed only items with an express purpose—except for two bright, oversized canvases. Dakini guessed they’d been painted by Jake’s mom. A grey cat jumped up from the low-set sofa and walked over to sniff Dakini’s dirty legs, meowing and looking up at Jake.
“Sorry, kitty. Can’t pick you up right now.” He looked at the dried rivulets of blood on her legs. “C’mon. Let’s get you cleaned up.”
As they passed the inside of the huge front window, Dakini gasped as she took in the entire, breathtaking view. They were high enough to see clear over the dark tops of the redwoods, past the glittering Golden Gate Bridge, all the way to the high rises of downtown San Francisco—a view just opposite hers, and equally stunning.
The bathroom Jake led her to was reminiscent of the spa with its teak woodwork and Indonesian flair. The giant shower had a concrete stool in the corner and ferns growing in earth adjacent to its pebbled floor. The sleek, dark wood vanity held roughly carved stone sinks. But the best part—the part that Dakini knew she’d soon be enjoying—was a deep, Japanese soaking tub.
Jake led her to the edge of it and helped her sit as he ran hot, steamy water. He added a huge scoop of eucalyptus Epsom salts. While they waited for it to fill, Dakini ran her fingers back and forth over the soft surface of the water. She couldn’t wait to get in the tub. Too bad it was large enough for only one…
“C’mon. Let’s get you out of these clothes.” He unbuckled her sandals, lifted her dress over her head, and helped her out of her bra and panties.
Gripping his hand, she stepped into the deep tub.
“Ouch,” she cried when the hot water lapped her raw knees.
She sat on a ledge inside the tub that submerged her to her shoulders. The stinging in her knees gradually subsided as she leaned her head back, floating in the weightlessness of the water. She bent and straightened her legs as much as the tub would permit in an attempt to counter the stiffness in her knees. She dunked her head, dissolving the worst of the dirt that had dried on her face. She thanked the heavens for the cure-all that was hot water.
“Here’s a wash cloth and a couple bath towels,” Jake said, lighting a candle. “I’ll leave you alone for a bit. If you need anything, holler. And don’t worry about waking my sister. She sleeps like the dead.”
Catching his arm before he could get away, Dakini said, “Thank you, Jake. This is amazing. All of it. Thank you.”
He bent to kiss the top of her head on his way out. She heard the TV click on, the volume so low all she could hear was applause and a laugh track. Either some old sitcom or one of the late night shows.
She scrubbed her shins, watching the dried blood disburse into watery little clouds. Shame and embarrassment, her old friends, rose up in the back of her throat as she considered how she’d face Jake after this. She realized she had no answers as she closed her eyes, taking deep breaths of the eucalyptus steam.
A hand was on her shoulder, and her eyes flew open.
“Hey there. Wake up.” Jake gently shook her.
“Geez.” Disoriented, she looked around the bathroom. “I guess I fell asleep. And I’m freezing now.” She shivered as she took Jake’s hand to climb out of the tepid water. The steamy heat had long since left the tub, and she was covered in goosebumps. She accepted the fluffy white towel he held for her.
He helped her to sit on the edge of the tub and applied salve and bandages to her cuts. He glanced up at her. “I can sleep in the guest room if you’d like my bed to yourself.”
The last thing she wanted was to be alone.
“Actually…it would be nice to sleep together. If that’s okay with you.” Her heart pounded while she waited for his answer.
But he said nothing.
Instead, he extended his hand and led her into to his bedroom. For the first time in a very long time, her past wasn’t sitting on her shoulder, badgering her with its bullshit memories.
He peeled back the fluffy down comforter and helped her slide in. Stripping to his boxers, he climbed after her. In a matter of minutes, Dakini was dozing again, tucked into Jake’s spooning embrace. He nodded off just seconds behind her.
The instant the morning sun hit just the right angle, Jake’s room came alive with light. Squinting from the bed, Dakini peered through the sliding glass door window over the tops of the soaring redwoods to find that the spookiness of the night had been replaced with sprightly cheer. It was as if the night crew had gone home and the day squad of butterflies, hummingbirds, and blue skies had arrived for duty. Even the precipitous canyon drop-offs were no longer intimidating.
Just as she realized she was alone in the bed, Jake entered with a glass of frothy juice. His boxers, which had a small tear at the hem, hung deliciously low around his hips.
Someone needs to buy new underwear.
He held the glass to her. “I thought you might like something to drink. And a couple Excedrin.”
Dakini swallowed the juice and pills in one gulp. “Guess I’m thirsty. Thank you.”
He slid back into bed, settling on his side and facing her. “How’d you sleep?”
“Better than I have in a long time.” She scooted closer until they shared a pillow.
Jake stroked her hair, tucking an errant strand behind her ear.
She looked down to avoid his eyes. “That was…quite the night,” she said.
“Let me help you.” He looked like he was holding his breath.
“What?” Her brows knit together, and she stiffened. “What do you mean?”
But she knew what he meant.
“If you agree to a twelve-step program, I’ll join you for support.”
“What? Why?” Without realizing, she inched her head back from Jake’s face.
“You need to kick this. The drinking.”
A rising blush heated her face, and she faltered between humiliation and gratitude. Maybe it was okay to suffer a little of both…
“You don’t have to do that,” she said stiffly.
“I know I don’t have to.”
Tears threatened as humiliation took hold. Did he feel sorry for her? Or genuinely like her? Knots twisted her stomach as she thought back to her rage of the night before. Time to clarify the inevitable.
“I thought you had a problem with my work at Devi’s,” she said with one raised eyebrow.
“I did say that. I’m sorry. I was being an asshole. I was tweaked you had brushed me off after lunch at the Relais.”
Might as well lay it all out. “Yeah, I was insulted. I take a lot of pride in my work.”
“I know you do, and you should.
I’m sorry.”
She sighed with relief, having gotten that piece of ugliness out of the way. At least for the time being, anyway.
“So. Why did you brush me off?” Jake asked.
“I’ve avoided getting involved with anyone for so long, I didn’t know what else to do. I’m sorry.” She bit her lip.
“We’ll see if we can change that.”
Fear surged through her, but the hope that followed was stronger.
He leaned toward her, and their lips pressed together, their tongues exploring. Propping himself on one arm, Jake ran his free hand from the roundness of her ass, along the curve of her lower back, around to her belly, and up until he found her full breast. He pulled on her hard nipple, soothed it, and then tugged it again. She gasped as the alternating pain and relief sent tingles of pleasure up and down her spine. She shivered, not from cold, but from trepidation and excitement.
As she lay facing him, Dakini felt his growing shaft pressing hard against her thigh. Her fingers wandered down his jaw, scrunching his beard, and then reached around his head, sinking into his hair. Grabbing, she gave a little tug.
“Hey!” he said.
“Hey yourself.” She laughed.
Careful to favor her sore knees, he laid her back and positioned himself between her knees, placing her legs over his shoulders as he leaned in to taste her breasts for the first time. Tickling her with gentle bites, he intensified the pressure on her nipples until she moaned and writhed. Her hand grabbed the back of his head as he tilted to her other side. After he teased her there, he gripped both breasts, kneading and soothing them as his lips traveled down her abdomen.
Once he reached her belly button, he circled the indentation, causing her to jump in ticklish spasms. She laughed in relief when he finally headed farther south. Her velvety soft, shaved pussy was wet with excitement. Spreading her moisture with his face, he covered himself in her inviting perfume. His hands wandered around to her ass and then down to knead the soft flesh at the back of her quivering thighs, where his fingers found her pillowy lips, gently opening them. She saw him smile at her pussy as if he wanted to remember its scent, shape, and color before he buried his tongue and lips into it.
