Apocalyptic Beginnings Box Set

by M. D. Massey

He stopped at the local burger joint for lunch and sat at the bar, like usual. Their food was great and their bar even better because they stocked what he liked.

  “Let me guess… The usual?”

  The barmaid leaned over and rested her elbows on the bar, making her cleavage available for Henry’s viewing pleasure. When he visited the joint, she flirted with him and would practically crawl over everyone to wait on him. He figured she would shove an elderly person or child in the way of a moving vehicle just so she could get to him first.

  She wanted him and, if he were being honest, he had considered her a few times. But after seeing that black-haired beauty at the bookshop, he wasn’t interested in the barmaid anymore.

  “You know me so well. Make the food to go today, please,” he said with a flirty smile. She grabbed the bottle of Walker and poured him a double.

  “You in a hurry to get out of here today?” Then she squinted at him, her eyes darting around his slightly bruised face. “What happened? Did you get into an accident or something?”

  “Something like that.” Henry picked up the glass of whisky and took a sip, feeling the heat hit the pit of his stomach. “I’m fine, just busy today.”

  “Well, if you need someone to nurse you back to health…” she offered, smiling.

  Henry held up his hand. “Look, you’re nice and quite beautiful, but I’m interested in someone else.”

  Her face dropped. Everyone at the bar glanced toward him, then the barmaid.

  “Got it,” she bit out, then put his order in. He wondered if she was going to have the chef spit on his food. It was probably a good time to find another place to get his lunches, liquids, or otherwise.

  He nursed the double whisky, tuning into the conversations around him, hearing a familiar raw and raspy voice. Peeking over his left shoulder, his heart sped up.

  There she was. The black-haired beauty with the meaty ass. She was sitting with a guy he presumed was her brother, considering they looked similar. Henry had a momentary thought of his lap being the seat. He had to shake his head to get the image out before he got hard right in the middle of the restaurant. He turned back around, tuning into their conversation.

  “See what happens when you don’t show up, asshole? I could have totally avoided the whole confrontation.” Her voice was full of bitterness.

  “I’m sorry! Jesus, Elaina. How many times do you want me to apologize?” Her brother had a smooth and rich voice, unlike hers.

  “More than you have,” she muttered.

  Henry chuckled. Her attitude was priceless and he loved every bit of it.

  “I don’t know what to tell you.”

  Her brother was absolutely annoyed by her. He guessed she was the younger sibling.

  “Whatever, Nick.” He could hear the eye roll in her voice.

  “How’s the new job?”

  When she groaned, Henry closed his eyes, imagining that sound while she was in a compromised position…preferably while he was at her apex, making her writhe with great pleasure under his tongue.

  “Let me just tell you, that hag is a total fucking bitch.”

  His eyes popped back open.

  “Christ, Elaina.”

  “She accused me of flirting with a customer because I was chatting with him about the books he was purchasing. And she did it right in front of him! Hello, you hag. It’s a fucking bookshop. Aren’t we supposed to talk to the customers about the product we sell?”

  Henry worked hard not to burst into laughter, which he could have used after the morning he had.

  “Bite your tongue for once in your life. If you get fired from this job, Mom is going to disown you.” There was a moment of awkward silence between them. “Can we talk about Mom and Dad’s party?”

  “I’ll call you about that later. I found a few ideas online last night, but I left them at home.”

  “Typical.”

  “Oh, shut the hell up.”

  “Well, give me a call then,” he said. Henry heard her laugh. It was beautiful, almost a giggle. “What?”

  “Are you going to be out with the next love of your life?”

  “I do have a date.”

  “Of course you do. Well, I’ve got to get back to the hag.”

  Henry glanced over his shoulder and saw her stand. His heart raced. He wasn’t ready for her to leave. He wanted to follow her, but his meal hadn’t arrived yet. Normally, he would just leave the cash and run, but his gut was three levels of angry hungry. He needed to eat.

  She walked past him, stopping at the register two bar stools down. He inhaled as she passed. She smelled like vanilla. Goddamn, it was delicious. He wanted that wrapped around him, enveloping him. When she spoke with the cashier, her voice was like music to his ears.

  A soft smile graced his lips. He watched her ass sway back and forth as she left the diner. Antsy didn’t even begin to describe how he felt at that moment. He wanted to get out of there and follow her.

  Several minutes and another double whisky later, his meal finally arrived. He tipped back the rest of his drink and turned to get off the stool, paper bag full of greasy deliciousness in hand. When he noticed her table still hadn’t been cleared, his eyes darted around it, trying to see what she was eating. A burger and fries. There were ketchup smudges and a few fries still lingering with the dejected lettuce. He liked a girl who could eat. None of that “I only eat salad” bullshit.

  Then he saw it.

  Her phone. Dumb luck was on his side.

  Henry took a quick glance around, then walked to the table, grabbing the phone. It was so busy in there that no one noticed. He left the diner, a huge grin on his face.

  He rushed out to his truck, jumped in, and pulled out her phone. The teal silicone case smelled like vanilla, which was heavenly. He felt like a complete jackass for holding the phone to his nose, but he wanted his nostrils full of her scent forever. He didn’t know if it was a perfume or lotion, but he didn’t care. He just wanted it all over himself.

  The smartphone was similar to his, but an older model with a small crack in the screen. Easy enough, he thought. After he dragged his finger across the screen, he discovered there wasn’t a passcode needed to access it. If he could fist bump himself, he would.

  And there it was…all her information, contacts, and pictures. He even perused her Facebook page for a few minutes, letting out a chuckle or two over her posts. She should have been more careful about her privacy, he thought. He was almost as excited as a kid waiting for St. Nick on Christmas Eve. He noted there wasn’t a boyfriend contact or pictures with her and a guy. A big plus for him. Most pictures were of her and that ginger friend of hers. He smiled at the close-ups. She was beautiful. Absolutely fucking stunning.

  Henry drove back to his apartment, then devised a plan as he sat and ate at the breakfast bar in his kitchen. He looked through the pictures with a careful eye, noting an older gold-colored compact car, possibly a Honda, in a few of them. He would look for it when he went back to the bookshop later to see if she was still working.

  He cleaned up his garbage, neatly folding up the wrappers and tossing them in the trash. He grabbed the spray cleaner and a paper towel, then scrubbed down the entire counter, even though he only used a small section of it.

  Henry decided to shower again and shave. He felt dirty after eating his greasy meal. Plus, he wanted to cut his beard down so he was less recognizable to her. His usual washing routine was quick but efficient. He jumped out of the shower and meticulously dried off. He wrapped the white plush towel around his hips and stepped up to the mirror.

  He frowned. The bruising was light, but not all that noticeable. In general, he didn’t like what he saw in the mirror. From years of being in the program, he learned to not like the way he looked. They cut him down so many times, in so many different ways, he almost hated himself and how he looked. He never understood why women threw themselves at him all the damn time.

  Sighing, he grabbed his beard trimmer and took it down to
his usual five o’clock shadow, then grabbed his toothbrush and gave his pearly whites a quick polishing. He pushed back his damp hair to look at his stitches. They looked good. He opened the jar of hair wax and gave himself his usual messy look.

  He yanked the towel off his hips, hung it on the towel bar, and walked through his bedroom, naked as the day he was born. He went through his drawers, pulling out his black micro-fitted boxers, dark wash jeans, and a charcoal-colored t-shirt. Standing in front of his closet, he selected a dark navy zip-up hoodie. There was always a method behind his madness.

  He grabbed his loaded Sig and his weapons vest off of the dresser, then walked into the living room. Opening the out-of-place antique trunk, he exposed the metal trunk with keypad. He entered the code and opened the lid. His eyes danced around the interior. He was careful to select the tools he felt he may need: an extra magazine and his favorite long-bladed hunting knife. He tucked the weapons away on his body. With the hoodie on, no one would know a damn thing.

  Henry pulled on his Nikes then headed out to get the show on the road.

  Henry pulled around the back of the building where the bookshop was located. Looking around, he spotted it.

  The gold Honda.

  He smiled. Except for the fight at the gym that morning, he was having a stellar day.

  As he jumped out of his truck, Henry looked around, ensuring that his stunt would go unwitnessed, and pulled the knife from underneath his hoodie. With a grin, he slashed her tire. After that, he had to sit and wait. It was just too easy.

  He sat in his truck, making it look like he waited for someone. Technically, it was true. He kept checking his ridiculously expensive watch, drummed his fingers on the steering wheel to the beat of the music on his iPod, reorganized the compartments around him, read a little, and played a few mind-numbing games on his phone.

  About three-and-a-half hours later, Henry’s patience finally paid off, but what he saw made him frown.

  Brow furrowed and cheeks flushed, she looked upset, and she hadn’t even made it to her car yet. He wondered what had happened. Pulling off his aviators, he set them on the dash and sat back in his seat, watching.

  When she saw her flat tire, the black-haired beauty threw her arms up, ranting. Probably cussing a blue streak, which made him smirk. He loved a woman with raw edges.

  “Patience, Daniels. Patience,” Henry drawled. She began digging through her purse. “And there’s my cue.”

  He jumped out of the truck just as she dumped her purse on the sidewalk. He squatted in front of her.

  “Do you need any help?” He knew his smile was warm. Then he locked eyes with her. Holy shit. She had the most beautiful eyes he had ever seen. Wet with tears, but stoic. They were the color of the sky. He wished he had eyes like that. He wanted to be able to stare into them every day for the rest of his so-called life. Her lips parted as she stared back at him.

  She made him feel things he had never felt before. He wasn’t sure why he hadn’t noticed them when she waited on him in the bookshop. Probably because he was trying to be inconspicuous. Plus, he was too busy looking at her meaty ass.

  At that moment, Henry knew he didn’t want to do the job anymore. He wanted out of the program.

  For good.

  Chapter 1

  -October 2014-

  There I was, standing in the corridor of the church with my father, waiting for my cue to proceed down the aisle. My legs shook, my stupid shoes caused me to have a slow and painful death, and I was sweating bullets.

  I hate sweating. This girl does not do sweating. Oh, did I mention I hate weddings, too? I just hate the whole fucking process: picking the venue, the food, the cake, the napkins. Seriously, who gives a shit about what color and material the napkins are? You’re just going to wipe your grubby hands on them.

  The only thing I was excited about was marrying the man of my dreams…Henry Daniels. He was everything I could have hoped for. Kind, proper, gentle, sweet and, well…wealthy. That last one was just an added bonus.

  He was in great shape. Not ripped, like a body builder, but he had great tone and hard edges that I found sexy. His hair was the perfect shade of brown with a tousled, “just fucked” look to it.

  And his eyes… I could gaze into them forever. The color of sparkly emeralds, they mesmerized me, sucked me in with their captivating quality. I remember the first time I locked eyes with him.

  -October 2012-

  I just got fired from another job, my car had a flat tire, and I was downtown, which wasn’t exactly where I wanted to have car troubles. It wasn’t the worst area, but there were always handfuls of freaks and weirdos around.

  Frustrated, I stood on the sidewalk next to my ass-crap of a car. It was getting late and a little nipplely outside. I was so not in the mood to take a cab, ride a bus, or hoof it home.

  I dug through my bag for my phone, cussing at myself the whole time because I had to have that trendy, gargantuan hobo bag. I spent almost an entire paycheck on it. I sometimes thought a rhino would get lost in that stupid bag.

  Not finding my phone, I stomped my foot like a two-year-old and grumbled. I had the brilliant idea to dump my purse out on the sidewalk and sift through its entire contents. Just as I dumped it, someone squatted in front of me. Irritated, I looked up…and nearly drooled.

  He had this amazing smile. So warm and sweet. His eyes drew me in, like a moth to a flame.

  When he asked if I needed help, I couldn’t speak. A few thoughts ran through my head, but nothing appropriate to say to someone you have known for a mere two seconds. Instead, I said, “Well, yeah, Captain Obvious.” I thumbed toward my flat tire.

  Seeing his startled look, I apologized. I was so flustered and stressed. This god-like man took my hand and we both stood. I was taken aback by his ice-cold skin.

  “Shamefully, I have no idea how to change a tire.” I looked at his hand curiously. He let go and tucked his hands in his pockets, looking away with embarrassment. “I can’t believe I just admitted that, especially to a woman.”

  At first, I was a bit thunderstruck by his statement, then I giggled. I mean, really, what man didn’t know how to change a tire? Apparently, the Adonis standing before me. He must have been far too busy looking sexy to learn silly car stuff.

  Then it occurred to me that he made me giggle. There haven’t been too many guys who have made me do that. Definitely no one as divine as the man standing before me admitting to an embarrassing fault. There was just something about him, but I couldn’t put my finger on it.

  He offered his cell phone, for which I was grateful because mine was MIA. I couldn’t get ahold of my father, and my brother wasn’t any help. He was on yet another date with another girl who he insisted was “the one”. I was fucking screwed. After I hung up, I wanted to chuck the phone, then I locked eyes with him again. I tentatively handed it back.

  “Uh, I suppose I should introduce myself. I’m Henry. Henry Daniels.” He held out his hand. When I took it, I noticed he still felt chilled, even though his hands had been in his pockets for the past several minutes. But the warmth of his smile made me smile back.

  “Elaina. Elaina Cooper,” I said in a business-like manner. I didn’t want to let on that I was melting on the inside, and the “I want to fuck this man” light flashed in my head with atomic power. However, the childish giggle may have said it all.

  “Pleasure to meet you, Elaina. Ahh…” He jammed his hand in his hair. “Since you’re having a hard time trying to find someone to help you, let’s go grab a cup of coffee, get warmed up, then we can call for help…if you promise you won’t throw my phone.” He smirked. I wasn’t going to make any promises I couldn’t keep.

  “Umm… Well, only if it’s close, since driving this will be an issue.” Jumping up and down on the inside, I worked hard not to release my inner schoolgirl giddiness. I hoped this god-like man would sweep me off my feet.

  “Right. Yes. There’s a café, Gemelli’s, just around the corner. I’ll
grab you that cup of coffee. My treat. Then we can find a number for a tow truck.”

  I tried to act skeptical, narrowing my eyes at him. His beautiful face was still…and had slight bruising. It wasn’t any of my business.

  “You wouldn’t be trying to take advantage of me, would you, Mr. Henry Daniels?” I asked, even though I would have fallen for the trap in a second. In my head, I yelled, Yes! Please take advantage of me! I’m begging you!

  “Of course, Ms. Elaina Cooper. Why wouldn’t I want to take advantage of a beautiful woman such as yourself?” When he winked at me, I melted. My cold exterior was now in a puddle on the concrete sidewalk.

  I glanced up at the sky. Even with the sun setting, I decided a cup of coffee with this seemingly interesting man wouldn’t be a big deal. Without a doubt, I wouldn’t mind getting to spend a little more time with my rescuer.

  As we walked to the café, the streetlights came on. He opened the door to the old-school Italian joint, and we grabbed a table by the window. The coffee was tasty, and I really wanted to get a slice of one of those cakes in the case, but I was too embarrassed. They looked drool-worthy, much like the man sitting across from me.

  In all honesty, I could have gone for chocolate frosting right at that moment. Just a spoon and a bowl of frosting would have made this girl happy…maybe even licking it off Captain Hotstuff’s abdomen. Now that would have made me really happy.

  We chatted for a couple hours. It was an amazing night, ending with a grungy tow truck driver who smelled like a cross between body odor and leftover pizza that’s been lingering in your fridge for a few days. Once he changed my tire, I handed over half my last check, Henry gave me his number, and we said our goodbyes. He gave me a quick embrace and kissed me on the cheek. His lips were so soft, I was jealous. He smelled so damn good, too. I would have jumped him right there if I had any nerve. I had to find my phone so I could call him.

  The next morning, I visited all the places I stopped, hoping I would find my phone. I dashed into the bookshop and the hag said some guy dropped it off. She said he found it on the street in front of the store. Whatever. I was glad to have it back so I could call Henry.