by Shaw Hart
“Sin.” He says before he ushers me into the apartment.
“Lock the door, Ainsley.” He says as he steps back.
I nod and close the door, clicking the lock and deadbolt into place. I look through the peephole and see him smile at my door before he turns and leaves.
Sin
I wait until I hear the deadbolt click before I turn and make my way down the stairs. I head to my car and put the key in the ignition but stop before I can pull away from the curb. I look up at where her apartment is and at the two windows that should belong to her. I see a light flick on in one and then she’s there in the window. She’s looking down at the street with a mixed look on her face. I know that she must be freaked out about having some guy follow her and knowing her name, but tomorrow I’ll explain everything. She closes the curtains, cutting of my view of her and I sigh as I put my seatbelt on and pull away from the curb.
I head home and pull into my parking spot in the underground parking garage. I take the elevator up to my place and hang my keys up on the hook as I kick my shoes off. My place is pretty bare, with gray walls throughout. It’s an open floor plan and from the front door you can see the living room, kitchen and my office space in the back. The bedrooms are all upstairs.
I go over to my desk first and pull up all of the files that I could find on my girl today. While she was working at the café, I had run a search on her. I read all of this on my phone but I want to read it again and make sure that I didn’t miss anything.
I walk into the kitchen and grab a water bottle out of the fridge before I head upstairs and into my bedroom. I chug half of the water bottle before setting everything down on the dresser and stripping out of my clothes. I walk into the bathroom and turn the shower on, brushing my teeth as I wait for the water to warm up. I take a quick shower and think about my girl. I need to come up with a plan to make her fall in love with me, to make her agree to be mine.
I towel off and throw on a pair of sleep pants before I grab the files and lay down in bed. I go over them one more time, trying to imagine what my girl’s life was like before yesterday. I set everything aside and set my alarm for 4 am, knowing I’ll have to wake up early if I want to escort my girl to work in a few hours. I close my eyes and drift off to dreams about her under me, staring up at me with those big blue eyes, shining with love.
Chapter Four
Ainsley
I blink my bleary eyes open as my alarm goes off. The man from last night flashes through my head once again. Sin. I’m not sure what to think about him. On one hand, he saved me from Blaine but the fact that I don’t know how long he’s been watching me makes me a little uneasy. I should have pressed harder last night after he told me his name. Asked him why he was following me and how he knew my name and where I live.
Something about how he looked at me and treated me when he protected me from Blaine and helped me home had made butterflies take flight in my stomach. When he was looking at me in the hallway, I could feel myself getting lost in him. Feeling his eyes on me had me pressing my thighs together to try to ease the ache growing between my legs.
I roll over in bed and rub my eyes, trying to scrub Sin from my mind so I can get to work. I take a quick shower and throw my hair up in a messy bun before pulling on my black jeans and t-shirt and grabbing my backpack for the day. I run into the kitchen and shove some granola bars and a water bottle into my bag. I peel a banana for Grams and I to split and make us some oatmeal.
“Morning, Grams!” I say as I lean over and kiss her cheek. She’s sitting in her chair by the window watching her morning shows.
“Morning, Honey.” She says back as she brushes some loose hair back behind my ear. I smile at her as I place a cup of tea down in front of her with her morning medicine.
“Thanks, Honey.” She says as I go back to stir some brown sugar into our oatmeal.
I bring the bowls over to the small table as Grams comes over to join me. I watch her make her way across the short distance and have to hold myself back from jumping up and helping her. She’s still so shaky and it’s been six months since the heart attack. The physical therapist said that she needs to be doing more herself to get her strength back up, so I sit patiently while she settles herself in her chair. She does seem like she’s getting stronger and I smile as I dig into my breakfast.
“How is work going, Honey?” Grams asks me as I bring the dishes over to the sink and wash them quickly before setting them aside to dry. I dry my hands off as I answer her.
“It’s fine, Grams.”
“You work so hard. You should take a couple of days off and get some more rest.”
“I’m trying to save up some money Grams. I’m fine. Trust me.” I say as a knock sounds at the door. I go over to answer it, expecting it to be Susan, Grams day nurse, but I’m shocked when I open the door to find Sin standing there.
“What are you doing here?” I ask shocked.
“I came to walk you to work.” He says calmly.
“Who is it, Honey?” Grams asks behind me.
“Uh,” I stare blankly at Sin and I see one side of his mouth tick up in a smile.
“It’s just a friend, Grams.” I say. I see over Sin’s shoulder that Susan is here.
“Susan’s here, Grams. I’ll see you later!” I call over my shoulder as I grab my bag and grab Sin’s arm, pulling him behind me. We both nod hello to Susan as she walks into the apartment and I hear her talking to Grams as the door closes behind her.
I drag Sin down the hallway and the stairs before we both burst out onto the street.
“What are you doing here?” I ask again.
“I told you, I came to walk you to work, Ainsley.”
He smiles at me as we stand on the sidewalk staring at each other.
“Why?” I blurt out.
He takes my elbow and starts to lead me to the subway. We walk past some of Blaine’s “employees” as they try to sell drugs on the corner. As Sin leads me past them and I can see him glaring at them out of the corner of my eye. Something about the way he’s trying to shield me and protect me from them makes me feel warm inside.
We get to the subway and I realize that Sin never told me why he’s doing this. We step onto the train and take seats in the mostly empty car.
“Why are you doing this?” I ask again.
He pauses for a minute before turning to look at me.
“I don’t know. There’s just something about you, it calls to something in me. I can see how hard you work, how you take care of everyone around you and I just think that someone should be taking care of you. I’d like that person to be me.”
Sin
I stare at her and wait for her to say something to my declaration but she just stares at me with wide eyes. I look up when I realize that our stop is coming up. I want to grab her hand with mine but I know that I can’t force her into this. I hold my hand out to her, palm up as the train comes to a stop. My breathe catches in my lungs as I wait to see what she’ll do. She looks from my hand to my face before finally she hesitantly places her hand in mine.
I try to hide my smile but I think she’s sees it as we get off of the train and make our way up the stairs and to the café. I hold her hand the whole way and it makes my heart feel light for the first time in years.
We pause on the sidewalk outside of the café and I look over at her to see her staring at our hands. I give her hand a squeeze and her eyes shoot up to mine. I smile at her and she gives me a tentative smile back.
“I’ll be around.” I say and she smiles at me before looking down at her shoes. I look down to and grow frustrated when I see her scuffed flats with no support left in the arches on her feet. I make a note to get her a better pair of shoes.
“Ok.” She says shyly before she lets my hand go and walks inside the café. I watch her go before turning and walking to the nearest shoe store.
Chapter Five
Ainsley
I look down at my new shoes and smile to myself ag
ain. I can’t seem to stop doing that today. I clock out at the café and grab my bag before I make my way to the door. I look out the front window and I can see Sin leaning against the building, waiting for me. I practically skip out the door and over to him. I need to tone this down before I scare him away, I think. Then I realize how he’s been acting towards me and I doubt I could scare him off.
I make my way over to him and he immediately sees me and stands up straight from the wall. I stop in front of him and he holds his hand out to me again. I can feel the blush hit my cheeks as I place my hand in his. We start to make our way to the subway when he pulls me up short.
“Did you eat?” He asks.
“Yeah, I grabbed some pancakes on my break.” I say, trying to pull him towards the stairs. I don’t want to be late for my shift at the bodega.
“When was that?” He asks, tugging on my hand to stop me.
“A couple of hours ago. I’m fine though, really.” I say, tugging on his hand again.
He doesn’t look happy about it but he lets me pull him towards the subway. We find spots standing up in one car and Sin wraps his arms around my waist, pulling me into him and trying to create a barrier between me and the other passengers. Some guy brushes up against me and I can hear Sin growl at him. He gives the other man a look over my head and the guy moves away as quickly as he can. I smile into his chest as we ride the rest of the way like this.
Our stop comes and he takes my hand again and leads me off the subway. Usually I have to push and fight my way through the crowded platform but with Sin here leading the way, people seem to just move out of the way. I could get used to this, I think to myself. We arrive at the bodega and he once again leaves me at the door. This time though, he leans down and brushes a soft kiss against me cheek. I blink up at him before turning and walking into the store.
I relieve Hayley from her shift and as she clocks out the doorbell rings. I look up to see Sin walking through the door. He’s holding a brown paper bag from the deli across the street. I want to laugh because I know that he went and got me food. It’s been so long since I’ve had someone who wanted to take care about me. Who protected me and tried to anticipate my needs. First the shoes and now this.
He hands me the bag and smiles at me.
“You need to eat.” He says as I take the bag from him.
“Thanks, Sin.” I say.
He smiles at me before he heads back out and across the street to the deli. I watch him take a seat at a table outside and look back towards the bodega. I smile to myself as I open the deli bag. I take a sandwich and chips out of the bag. He even got me a pink lemonade and a cookie, I realize as I dig further in the bag. I snack on my food all through my shift as I stock shelves and checkout customers. I look out the window to see if Sin is still there and every time I look, I see him already looking back at me.
Sin
I wait outside the bodega as she collects her bag and says goodnight to the boy who has the night shift. My cheeks hurt from smiling so much today. I can’t remember the last time that I smiled this much. Every time she looked through the window to see if I was still there waiting for her, I would smile wider. By the end of her shift I was out and out grinning. The fact that she’s making sure I’m there has to be a good sign, right?
This time when she steps outside, she’s the one who reaches for my hand first. I hold her hand as we make our way back to her apartment. We exit the subway at her stop and as we make our way home, I ask her how her day was.
“You were there for most of it.” She says with a little giggle.
I laugh with her, loving the sound of her giggles. Suddenly, the hairs on the back of my neck stand up and I pull Ainsley into me.
“What’s wrong?” She whispers up at me.
Just then the guy from last night, Blaine, steps out of the shadows with one of his lackeys at his side. I push Ainsley behind me as they step up to us.
“Evening, Ainsley.” He says with a greasy smile and my hands clench, wanting to knock that smile off of his face.
“What do you want?” Ainsley asks from behind me. I step in front of her more, blocking her from his view.
“I see you got yourself a man. Doesn’t look like much. If you were so desperate, you know I would have let you ride my dick if you were that hard up for it.”
I don’t even bother to say anything back to him. I just reach out and wrap my hand around his throat. His eyes widen as I drag him closer to my face.
“Stay the fuck away from her. You don’t touch her, you don’t talk to her, you don’t even look in her direction again. Is that clear?” I tighten my grip on his neck until his eyes just about bulge out. He frantically shakes his head yes and I drop him back down to the ground. I reach behind me and grab Ainsley’s hand, pulling her past Blaine and his lackey.
I wrap my hand protectively around Ainsley as I lead her into her apartment. I can feel her shaking as we walk and as soon as we get into her building, I swoop her up into my arms and carry her up the stairs to her door.
The woman from this morning is there and opens the door for us. She looks shocked when she gets a look at Ainsley and I look down to see her pale and shaking. I push past her and into the apartment, placing Ainsley on the couch.
“Is she ok?” The other woman asks. This must be Susan Glaser, Ainsley’s Grandma’s nurse.
“She will be. Just had a little run in with some jerk.”
I turn back to Ainsley as I feel her hand grip mine.
“What do you need, Ainsley? I’m here, doll.” I say as I crouch down next to her.
Before she can say anything, I see a frail older woman shuffle into the room and over to my girl. Ainsley’s Grams.
Chapter Six
Ainsley
I can’t seem to stop shaking. I’ve never been talked to like that and I keep replaying what Blaine said to me over and over again. The way that he had come at me. I don’t know what would have happened if Sin hadn’t been there. How far would Blaine have gone?
I look up when I see Gram come into the room, with a worried look on her face. I grip Sin’s hand tighter as he kneels next to me.
“Ainsley, what happened? Are you alright?” I’ve never seen Grams so worked up and I know that stress can’t be good for her.
“I’m fine, Grams. Blaine just said some stuff to me but Sin was there and he saved me.” Grams looks over to Sin and smiles. She sees the way I’m clinging to him and her smile grows wider.
“Do you need anything?” Susan asks and I know that she must be ready to leave.
“I’m fine, but thank you Susan.” I say moving to get up from the couch.
“Ok, I’ll see you tomorrow. I hope you feel better.” She says as she pulls on her jacket.
“I’ll walk you to the subway. Make sure you get there ok.” Sin says as he stands up.
I grip his hand tighter and he looks back at me before leaning down.
“I’ll be back.” He says as he brushes a quick kiss across my cheek.
I watch him walk Susan out the door. I should be happy that I found such a good guy, someone who was willing to make sure that people are safe. I turn back to Grams after they leave and see her smiling at me.
“Who was that?” She asks with a smug lilt to her voice.
I can feel the blush heat my cheeks and I groan as I place my face in my hands. Grams laughs as she sits down next to me. She nudges me with her elbow and I lift my face out of my hands to look at her.
“His name is Sin. I met him the other day and he’s been really sweet to me.”
“Well, I’m glad that he was there tonight.”
“Me too.” I say as the door opens and Sin walks back in.
He smiles at me as he closes the door and makes his way over to us.
“How are you feeling?” He asks as he looks down at me.
“I’m ok.” I say as I smile up at him. “Thanks for being there tonight.”
“Nowhere else I’d rather be. Blaine is still ou
t there. I’m glad I went with Susan.” He says.
I can feel my face blanch and right away Sin is there to rub my back and offer comfort.
“It’s ok. I’ll sleep outside in my car and make sure he stays away from your place. I’ll make sure that you’re safe.” He says.
“Nonsense. You can sleep here. I think that will make everyone feel better.” Grams says.
“Is that ok?” He asks.
“Yeah, I’d really like that.” I say as I rests my head on his shoulder.
Sin
I help Ainsley to her bedroom. Her room is clean and almost empty. There’s just a twin size bed and a small dresser with three drawers. She sits on her bed and I kneel and remove her shoes for her. Her Grams comes in with a pillow and blanket for me and I spread them out on the floor next to her bed. We say goodnight to Grams as we both lay down and I turn the light off as Ainsley settles into her bed.
It’s quiet for a few minutes and I wonder if maybe she fell asleep already. I wouldn’t be surprised if she did after the day that she had.
“Thank you for being there today.” She whispers into the dark.
“I’ll always keep you safe.” I say and I mean every word.
“Tell me about yourself.” She says.
For a minute, I panic. I know that I need to tell her about my past but she’s just now letting me in and I don’t want her to push me away because of what I used to do. I want her to know me though so I open my mouth and ask, “What do you want to know?”
“Everything.”
I chuckle quietly.
“Well, I grew up in New York. I never knew who my dad was and my mom overdosed when I was four. I grew up in a couple of different foster homes.”
“I’m so sorry, Sin.” She says and I see her hand reach out to me. I interlace our fingers together as I continue.
