by Michelle Amy
When the movie ended McCoy bundled me up in his arms and brought me upstairs to the bedroom. I was exhausted. He went through my dresser and handed me a blue silk camisole and a matching pair of shorts. His favourite sleeping outfit of mine. I slipped into it and brushed my teeth before letting myself fall into the bed. I yawned and dragged the blankets up over my shoulders while I waited for him to join me.
When he slid into the bed I pressed myself against him for warmth. He wrapped one arm around my shoulder and I nestled my cheek into his chest. I kissed the warm skin below his collarbone.
“Don’t tease me like that,” he whispered.
“It’s not teasing if I follow through.”
I knew he was looking at me even though I couldn’t see his face. His chest rose and fell as he chuckled. “I would never expect you not to follow through. But you’re tired. You should sleep. It’s been a long week.”
Jason had never once told me I should get some rest when sex was on his mind. I looked up at McCoy. Up at his dark hair that was messed up from the pillow. Up at his jaw and the curve of his mouth. “Where did you come from?” I breathed.
He grazed his fingers over my back lightly. It soothed me and brought me closer to exhaustion. He played with my hair before returning to rub my back. “Goodnight,” he whispered, kissing the top of my cheek.
“Goodnight.”
Then sleep came and blessed me with dreams of McCoy.
CHAPTER NINE
Carly dropped by the next day for brunch. It had been McCoy’s idea. He wanted to put in an effort for her to get to know him. The real him. Not the cold exterior she was accustomed to seeing. In the back of my head I knew he wouldn’t be able to help but be a bit stand offish, it was his nature.
When she arrived she came barreling into the kitchen in a storm of anger. I raised an eyebrow at her as she slammed her purse down on the counter and stood there huffing for breath. McCoy had been about to pour pancakes on the grill, but he paused mid pour to look up at her as she started to rant.
“Fucking Jason. Veronica, I swear to God, he’s lost his mind.”
“What did he do?” I groaned.
“Oh. Let me tell you. First he called me. I didn’t have his number so I answered. Imagine my surprise when he says, ‘oh hey Carly, this is Jason, you know, Vee’s ex?’.”
“What did you say?”
“I told him to take a fucking hike, that’s what I said. Then he started messaging me. Long, pathetic messages about how much of an idiot he is and how much he wants you back.” She rolled her eyes. “What a joke. And he wouldn’t stop! I had to block his number.”
I looked over at McCoy.
Carly sighed. “Did he call you too?”
I nodded. “Yeah, last night. Pretty late, too. But it was an unknown number, so I didn’t know it was him.” I went to my phone which was still where we had left it the night before. I blinked down at the screen. “Seventy six missed calls.”
Carly made an angry growling sound in her throat. “Such an ass. Coffee. Do you have coffee?”
I poured her a cup and McCoy plucked my phone out of my hand. “You have voicemails.”
“Just delete them. I don’t even want to know what they say.”
“This is obsessive behaviour,” McCoy said as he lifted the phone to his ear, “guys like this…” he didn’t finish his sentence.
“What are you doing?” I asked.
“Listening to the voicemails.”
“I’m sure it’s just Jason drunkenly slurring about how lonely he is.” Carly said, taking the coffee I had poured for her thankfully.
McCoy’s face hardened as he listened to the first message. I asked him again to just delete them, but he ignored me and proceeded to continue listening to the next one. I watched as tension grew in him. He was angry.
“Do you know where he lives?” McCoy asked.
“No.” I answered quickly. “Why?”
McCoy shrugged and dropped the phone on the counter. “Just wondering.” He returned to the pan and stirred the pancake mix again before pouring it into even circles.
Carly waggled her eyebrows at me. “Because he wants to kick the shit out of him.”
I looked between Carly and McCoy. He didn’t correct her. Carly smiled. “Oh, McCoy, I think you and I will get along swimmingly. I know where Jason lives.”
He looked over his shoulder at her. “Oh?”
She nodded.
“No, no, no.” I said. “The last thing we need to do is go over to Jason’s place. He’s an idiot, but that’s all he is. He’s only upset because I’ve finally moved on and found someone else and he knows it’s serious. He’s just freaking out.”
McCoy flipped the pancakes and turned to look at me. He folded his arms. “Serious, hey?”
“Yes.” Oops. I hadn’t meant to say that part.
McCoy grinned. “I like how that sounds.”
Carly groaned again and leaned on the counter. “Ugh. You two. So cute. I’m single as fuck over here. You know what would make me feel better? Shit kicking Jason! McCoy, what are you doing later? I think it could be a really good bonding experience for us. Everybody wins. You want McCoy and I to get along, right Veronica?”
McCoy was laughing as he lifted the now ready pancakes on to a plate. I was having none of it. “No. You guys aren’t going to go beat up Jason. Just leave it alone.”
McCoy shrugged as he put the pancakes down on the table and gestured for Carly to come sit. He pulled out her chair. “At least you tried,” he muttered.
She smiled up at him as she sat.
“For the record,” he continued, “it would have been an excellent bonding experience. But I’ll settle for pancakes and bacon.”
Carly laughed. I watched the two of them giggle like high school kids. It was what I wanted. Looking at them made me feel like everything was finally beginning to fall into place.
McCoy looked up at me. “You eating with us, or what?”
I grabbed the maple syrup from the fridge and plopped down in my chair between them as they continued to take jabs at Jason. It wasn’t long before McCoy was throwing his head back and laughing hysterically. Carly seemed enthused by his carefree laughter, and she continued to joke throughout breakfast.
When Carly was halfway through telling McCoy about the time she caught Jason cheating on me the doorbell rang. I stood to answer it but McCoy waved me back down to my chair. “I’ll get it, finish eating. Carly, hold that thought, I want all the details.”
When he left Carly turned her massive white smile over to me. “Okay,” she said, talking quietly so McCoy couldn’t hear. “You were right. He’s amazing.”
“I know. How crazy is it?”
She nodded. “Oh, girl, it’s batshit crazy. But the way he looks at you. God damn. It’s like how I look at Ryan Reynolds. True love.”
I giggled, then cursed when I dropped syrup on my jeans. I dragged my thumb over it and licked it off while Carly judged me with a skeptical scowl.
Then we heard a shout at the door.
I pushed my chair back as my heart leapt into my throat. It had been McCoy. A surprised yell, followed by the sound of something falling to the ground. Or someone.
CHAPTER TEN
Carly stood beside me. My cutlery fell to the ground and clanged at my feet, spraying syrup up my pant leg. Carly yelped and grabbed my arm. I tried to wriggle myself out of her grasp so I could work my way around the table. The house had fallen silent around us.
Carly looked over at me and mouthed ‘what the hell?’.
I strained my ears to listen for any movement. Nothing. “McCoy?” When I called his name I could hear the fear and worry in my own voice.
Then someone started laughing. It wasn’t McCoy’s joyful laugh. I knew this laugh. It was mean. It was cold.
Jason emerged in the doorway to the kitchen. His eyes were hooded and his chin was angled downwards, forcing him to look at up us from under his brows. Both arms hung by his sides
, and
my eyes followed the length of his right arm down to his fingers, which were wrapped around a baseball bat.
“McCoy isn’t free to talk right now,” Jason slurred. He was drunk. His eyes were heavy, his speech thick. His eyes slid slowly from me to Carly. “Fancy seeing you here, Car. The three of you having a good time?”
My hands were shaking. My mouth was dry and my tongue was practically glued to the roof of my mouth. “Jason…” I managed, “what are you doing here?”
“I just wanted to talk to you,” he snarled, his eyes snapping back to me, “but you wouldn’t give me the time of day. You walked around like you were so much better than me. But you’re not. You’re just a slut.”
“What did you want to talk about?” I asked.
He rolled his eyes. “Of course you want to talk now. Now that you don’t have your criminal to protect you. Sit down.”
Carly and I both sat. I fought away the panic that was rising in my chest and the tears that were stinging my eyes. While I watched Jason saunter up to the table I thought of McCoy. I couldn’t take my stare off the bat in Jason’s grip. What kind of damage had he done with that thing? McCoy wasn’t the kind of man to go down without a fight. I knew that about him for certain. I also knew Jason wasn’t the kind of person who was above fighting dirty. My stomach rolled.
He sat down in the chair McCoy had abandoned. “I wanted to talk about you, Vee. That’s all. I wanted to warn you.”
“Warn me?” I whispered. “Warn me about what?”
He rested the bat across his knees and ran one hand along the side of it. “About him.” He spat.
“McCoy?”
“Yes, of course McCoy.” His voice was a wicked snarl that made me recoil. “Do you know who he really is? What he’s done? You’re not safe with him around. I’m doing you a favour, Vee.” He smirked. “To be more accurate, I already did you a favour.”
“What did you do to him?” I was afraid to ask the question. I couldn’t stop the tears from escaping as Jason cracked a smile at me.
“Just gave him a taste of his own medicine.”
“What does that mean, Jason?” I swallowed the sob that was trying to break free.
He threw his head back and laughed. It was a malicious sound- the opposite of what I had
heard come from McCoy moments before. When Jason finally had himself under control he stood up again. He twirled the bat end over end in one hand while he spoke. “He nearly killed a man with one of these four years ago. Beat him to a senseless pulp. Left him lying on the floor in a puddle of his own blood. The guy was so battered that he only had six teeth left. His cheek was blown apart beneath the skin. He needed reconstructive surgery. Thousands and thousands of dollars.”
He looked at me expectantly. “I know,” I said.
That was not what he wanted to hear. “You know what he did and you still let him in? What the hell is wrong with you, Vee? He tried to kill someone!”
“I know,” I said again, this time giving in to the sob that I had held at bay.
Jason swung the bat across my kitchen counter, bowling over my coffee maker and a bowl of fruit. It all smashed under the impact and went flying across the kitchen floor. Carly shrieked beside me and covered her ears. He rounded on us, pointing the end of the bat at me. “Did he ever tell you who it was?”
“Who?”
Jason swung again, this time at my kitchen table. Everything shattered to the ground. Glass broke above my knees and rained down on my legs. “McCoy, you dumb bitch! Did he ever tell you who he tried to kill?”
I shook my head. My tears were uncontrollable now.
“It was his own damn father, Vee.”
I shook my head.
“Oh yeah, sweetcheeks, I know. Pretty messed up, right? He tried to bash daddy’s brains in. Right in the middle of the kitchen. Kind of like where we are right now. Good thing I already got the bashing over with.”
“Please leave,” I begged. “Please, Jason. You’ve made your point. I get it. I’m sorry. But you’re scaring me.”
“Am I? Good. Apparently you like being scared.” He crouched down in front of me and rested the bat over his shoulder. “Apparently you like the kind of man who does this kind of thing. Does it get you off?”
“Stop. Please.”
“Or what?”
I didn’t have an answer to that. In his drunken stupor there was nothing I could do. He wouldn’t calm down just because I asked him to. If I tried to force him to leave there wasn’t a doubt in my mind that he would get violent with me. With him holding that bat I didn’t want to take any chances. Especially not with Carly right beside me. He hated her. If he had hurt McCoy… I knew he wouldn’t hold back from hurting Carly.
I lifted my chin and tried to stop my bottom lip from quivering. “I don’t know what you want from me.” I said.
“I don’t want anything from you. You’re a joke. I thought… I thought that I had lost something special with you. But now I see what you really are. You’re a whore. You’ll take anyone.”
His words made me flinch even though I knew they weren’t true. Carly was shaking beside me. When she let out a small whimper Jason’s eyes slid from me to her and his expression morphed into a new kind of creature.
“Car. How have you been?” He asked, tilting his head to the side.
She wouldn’t look at him. She kept her eyes down on her lap and she bit her bottom lip. She shook her head when he asked her again. Then he shouted at her.
“Stop it!” I yelled. “Enough, Jason!”
He ignored me and rose to his feet, stopping in front of Carly. He rested the end of his bat in her lap. “You slapped me, last time we saw each other. Hard as you could.”
Carly was crying.
Jason started to laugh again. My mind reeled. How could this be happening? I hated him. I had hated him for a long time, now. But I had never seen something like this coming. I wondered how far I had pushed him to bring him to this. How had me seeing McCoy created such a monster?
He was yelling at Carly. I rose unsteadily to my feet. “Jason. Please. You’ve made your point. We get it.”
He turned on me. “Do you? Do you get it?” He took several steps towards me and I retreated backwards until my lower back hit the kitchen counter. “Tell me, Vee, do you trust him? Do you think he will keep you safe? Do you think his own father expected him to attack him? You’re naive. He got what he deserved.” His lips curled up in a sneer.
“What did you do to him, Jason?”
My question only infuriated him further. He let out an angry roar and lunged at me, pinning me against the counter. “Why do you care so much?”
I tried to push him away but it was useless. I could smell alcohol and tobacco on him. “Because he’s important to me!”
“Do you love him, Vee?” Jason’s voice was quieter as he looked at me and waited for my answer. When I didn’t answer he gritted his teeth. “Tell me.”
I closed my eyes. “Yes... yes I do.”
I could see Carly reaching for her purse behind Jason. She widened her eyes at me as she searched for her phone. I had to distract him.
“I’m sorry, Jason, but I do. I was lonely. And all of a sudden he was there.”
Jason searched my eyes. “You were lonely?”
I nodded. “I never saw anyone after we ended. I was alone the whole time. And then I ran into him at the bar. And he was nice to me. And we talked. And then I started to get to know him and he’s not as bad as you think.” Carly was unlocking her phone and beginning to punch in numbers. “I didn’t trust him at first. I thought it was just a fling. But he’s a good person, Jason. I mean it.”
He shook his head. “He’s a dangerous person. He’s tricking you. Do you know why they call him McCoy? He’s playing a long game.”
“There’s no game,” I said, fighting the surge of panic that washed over me as I tried to process what he had just said. “He cares about me. Now please, Jason. Just go. We wo
n’t say anything to anyone about this. Just let me go to him. Let me make sure he’s okay.”
Jason’s lips peeled off his teeth. “No.”
I squirmed beneath him. “Please.” I sobbed.
He fell silent when the sound of the operator at the other end of Carly’s 911 call answered the phone. He looked back at her, his teeth still bared in a vicious animalistic snarl. She was motionless. The operator on the other end of the phone asked if anyone was there. Then Carly started to tell them my address.
Jason went after her with freakish speed. She screamed and dropped the phone as she tried to get away. I ran after them as he caught Carly’s wrist and yanked her towards him. She kicked and writhed, desperate to try to escape him.
I came up behind them and did the only thing I could do. I kicked him between the legs.
He let out a howl and bent over clutching his crotch. Carly wriggled out of his grasp and I grabbed her arm. “Come on!” I shouted, yanking her with me.
We ran through the doorway of the kitchen and out into the hall. My front door was wide open. McCoy was sprawled face down in front of it. My heart leapt into my throat again. I ran to him and fell to my knees at his side. “McCoy!” I called his name over and over. I shook his shoulder. He didn’t move.
Carly grabbed my upper arm and tugged me roughly. “We have to get the hell out here!”
I yanked my arm away and lowered my head over McCoy. He was breathing. Thank God. I tried to find the damage Jason had done. I brushed McCoy’s hair off his forehead looking for a trace of a head wound. Then I pulled the collar of his shirt down. He was bleeding from somewhere on the back of his head. “Oh my God,” I breathed. “Carly, I can’t leave him here.”
“You don’t have a choice, let’s go!”
We heard Jason coming. His footfalls were loud as he rounded the corner in the hall. He stopped when he saw me beside McCoy. He pointed his bat at me. “Stay right where you are.”
I looked up at Carly. “Get out of here.”
She shook her head.
“Car, now, get the hell out of here. Get help.”
Carly looked from me to Jason, then back to me. Her stare hardened and she mustered up the strength to do what she had to. She took off running across the porch and down the steps. Jason yelled after her. She never looked back. I knew she would be able to get help. I didn’t have to wait long. McCoy needed me.
