by Alice Ward
He leaned in close, his breath minty with a hint of tobacco as his mouth pressed into my cheek. “Maybe you can pay your daddy’s debt?” he asked, his words slow and calm as he placed a hand on my thigh.
“I don’t have anything,” I said through gritted teeth, twisting away from his hand. He laughed when the larger man tightened his grip, sending more pain through my tired body.
The small man reached up, grabbed my purse, and started rummaging through it. He pulled out the ring, a gleam in his eye as he stared at its beauty. “This will do, for now.”
“Take it,” I snarled. “I was sending it to him to give to you anyway.”
The van stopped and fear nearly paralyzed me as I tried to peer through the painted windows to better understand our location. Then I looked at both men again, memorizing each detail of their faces. Their clothes. Any marks on their person. It wasn’t much, but it helped me to stay calm.
The door slid open and I was yanked outside. This was it. It was my turn to have my fingers broken, or be raped… or worse.
“Your daddy has one week. We’ll be coming back for both of ya.”
The large man pushed me forward and I landed face-first in the grass. My purse landed beside me, the contents spilling out all over the ground. I reached for my phone and scrambled to my feet as I watched the van disappear down the road.
I wasn’t hurt. Scared shitless but otherwise unharmed. I looked around, but had no idea where I was.
I must have been in shock from the ordeal because I just stood there, frozen. It wasn’t until I noticed headlights in the alley I stood in that I regained control over my body. I ran away, jumping behind a row of garbage cans to hide as the small white truck drove by. The area still looked rough, wherever I was. It couldn’t be far from the condo. They hadn’t kept me long, thank God.
I had to get out of here, back to the safety of my room. The thought of calling a cab made me cringe. I wasn’t waiting out here for an hour for one to arrive. I looked at my phone, tears streaming down my face.
There was only one person I needed right now.
Todd.
CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE
Todd
“You know that girl is crazy for you,” Kane repeated the same shit I’d heard all week.
I was tired of hearing the same old lines from him, especially him. I could still see her curled up in his arms, crying like a wounded kitten. What did she have to cry about? I was the one lied to, betrayed, used.
“I just wanna have a beer man,” I said politely, but stern enough to shut him down on the topic of Katrina.
I could tell he wasn’t ready to be shut down, but I didn’t give him much choice. I gripped my beer, walked over to the bar, and sat alone at the end. The bartender was cute, friendly enough too. Her tight little ass was nice to watch as she worked, going back and forth to serve up drinks for all the guys. When she leaned in to ask me what I needed, her cleavage filled my eyes.
My dick shifted in my pants, growing without consent. My thoughts weren’t on the bartender but on Kat. Damn, how I missed her smooth skin, her tight ass, and that beautiful smile. Why did I have to go and mess things up by falling for her?
As if she was conjured up in a spell cast by my mind, she appeared on the front of my screen, looking beautiful in the picture I’d saved in my contacts. “You need another?” the bartender asked, leaning in real close to give me another shot of her full breasts.
“Sure.” I smiled.
“Your girlfriend getting antsy?” she asked, looking toward my phone.
I slid my finger to the ignore button. “That’s nobody.”
Her smile widened, and her tongue peeked out of her mouth, licking her top lip slowly and sensually. “Well, I get off in thirty minutes,” she said softly.
My phone lit up again and again, showing Kat’s face on the screen. My dick was beginning to realize it had a chance to get lucky and was pushing me in the bartender’s direction. “And in thirty-five minutes, forty minutes.” I smiled as I spoke.
It wasn’t my style to pick up anyone in the bar, especially the bartender. I just needed to get my mind off Kat.
She winked, grabbed me another beer, and moved to the end of the bar where some of the other players were waving her down. My phone vibrated, this time a text, not a call. I slid my thumb across the screen to see a message from Kat.
Please HELP ME! I won’t ever ask for anything again, PLEASE TODD!
I stared at the screen, reading the text over and over again. My heart raced at her words, her desperation. But my mind reminded me of the pain she’d caused. The lies she’d told. This could be part of her game.
The bartender moved back toward me, leaning closer. “So, you staying somewhere close?”
“I’ve actually gotta take off, sweetheart,” My dick twitched angrily at my words. I wasn’t sure why I'd chosen to get involved with Kat again. I couldn’t trust her, but I couldn’t bear the thought of her being in trouble.
I paid my tab, left a huge tip to make up for the let down, and slid from my barstool. I called Kat’s number as I walked outside. It rang once, twice, my heart started to pound hard against my chest. What if she’s hurt?
“Oh my God, thank you, Todd. I’m sorry, I didn’t know who else to call.” Her voice trembled on the other end of the phone. It was obvious she was crying, scared, and this wasn’t a game. At least if it was, she was a damn good actress.
“Where are you?” I asked.
“I don’t know.” Her voice became more desperate and scared.
“What do you mean you don’t know?”
“These men, they pushed me into a van, stole my ring. Todd, I’m scared.”
I was growing scared too. Men in a van? Where the fuck was she?
“Calm down and tell me what you can. Do you see a street sign, a building, anything?” I asked frantically.
Her sobs were uncontrollable and making it hard to understand her. I finally got her calm enough to give me a cross street. “I’m on my way,” I told her and waved down a cab driving by.
I kept her on the phone but didn’t ask her to explain anything else. “You’re gonna be okay, kitten,” I said, feeling my throat swell as I spoke. Damn, this girl really had me by the heartstrings, and she was tugging on them hard with those tears.
She wasn’t far from the condo, just about a mile. The neighborhood was dark, most of the houses seemed abandoned, and Kat looked like a scared animal as the cab pulled up to the corner where she was standing behind a row of garbage cans, ducked down, hiding and terrified of her own shadow. I got out, helped her up and into the cab.
I held her close to me, my arms surrounding her for comfort and warmth. She was shaking, still sobbing, and all I could do was caress her arm, squeeze her to me, and wipe away her tears as quickly as they fell.
I took the door key from her bag and unlocked her door. She immediately went to the bedroom, stripping out of the clothes she wore. She got down to her bra and panties before turning to me with a pale, panicked expression.
“I have to call my dad,” she said frantically, digging in her purse for her phone.
“First, sit. Tell me what happened, Kat. Who were these men?”
The story she told me kicked my memory into gear, and I truly heard everything she’d said at the bar that night. I'd been too drunk to comprehend it all, how bad it truly was, and why she’d hidden her father’s secret. I didn’t think she’d said anything about a large debt, or loan sharks, but I remembered her saying everything they owned was sold or repossessed. I heard her clearly now.
“A million dollars?” I gasped, shocked by the amount of debt old Spaceman had created with gambling but knowing that most of it was exorbitant interest. Hearing that the men broke all his fingers made me cringe. These weren’t reasonable people. They could’ve killed him. Hell, they could’ve killed Kat.
“What was the ring worth?” I asked.
“It was appraised at sixty thousand.”
“And he has a w
eek to come up with the rest?” I asked.
She nodded as tears rolled down her cheeks. She’d stopped sobbing, but the tears wouldn’t seem to turn off. I pulled her into my arms, giving her my warmth and calm. I could easily give her the money, but should I trust her? Could I trust her?
“I’m so sorry for lying to you,” she whispered, her lips in my chest. “Everything about me is a lie, to everyone except you. I act fearless, like my life is one big adventure, but in reality, I’m just an ordinary, boring girl.”
She pulled out her tablet from the nightstand and scrolled through pictures on her social media page. “See, here I made it look like I was partying with the rock band. I took that at the station and then went home and ate ice cream in my pajamas. I didn’t even go to the concert.”
I was shocked to hear how she felt her father had overshadowed her, casting her into the darkness where she felt unseen. He was the hero, the shining star, and she'd always felt like she had to live up to his bigger than life image. She'd created this world where she appeared to be everything she thought she should be.
“It’s pathetic, I know,” she said softly.
There wasn’t anything pathetic about Katrina Delaney. She was a strong woman. She was a woman who had a huge piece of my heart. I didn’t understand her fears, her need to create an image for everyone to believe. But it didn’t matter. I had my own dysfunctions, like jumping out of an airplane when life wasn’t exciting enough. At least she understood why she did the shit she’d done. I felt like I was chasing that same old rush again and again, looking to fill a hole, an emptiness, and until Katrina had come along, I didn’t think it could ever be filled.
“I need to call my dad,” she said, turning her phone over and over in her hand.
“You’re too upset, let me.”
I was surprised when she handed me her phone. Her eyes were wide and filled with tears as I dialed the number. “Mrs. Delaney?” I asked when a female voice answered Bobby’s phone.
“Yes, who’s this?” She sounded frantic.
“This is Todd Morris, from the Beasts. I’m here with your daughter.” I spoke calmly, trying to reassure her from hundreds of miles away.
The woman on the other end of the phone sobbed as I told her about Kat’s night. “I’m so sorry.”
“It’s not your fault,” I said, comforting her.
I thought about Kat being manhandled into that van, scared and alone. How she said he'd touched her, threatened her, and how it all still had her shaken. It was Bobby’s fault, and for that, I was grateful her mother had answered and not him.
“Is she hurt?” Janice Delaney asked.
“No, she’s safe. I’m going to stay with her tonight.”
“Thank you,” she whispered, her voice cracking again.
I hung up the phone and caressed Kat’s back as she hugged the pillow on her large bed. “Please don’t hate him,” she said.
I did hate him, at least a part of me did.
“He has a problem, it’s a disease. He never meant for any of this to happen. He’d never put me in harm’s way,” she pleaded. “Or my mom. He loves us.”
But he did put her in harm’s way. Maybe he didn’t mean to, but he did.
“I feel so dirty,” she said softly.
“C’mon,” I said, extending my hand to her. She was trembling as I helped her from the bed. Her body quivered as my hands unfastened her bra, letting it fall to the floor. I pulled her in close, her breasts pressed tightly against my chest as I kissed her softly on the neck. “Let’s get you cleaned up.”
Kat looked so fragile under the water, her face lifting to the stream to wash away the tears. I undressed to my boxers and stepped into the shower with her. She needed me to hold her. I needed to hold her.
Tiny pieces of gravel fell from her hair as I ran shampoo through the strands with my fingers. Her back pressed against my chest as I washed the scrapes on her arms and her knees. I thought I heard her mumble something, something that sounded like, “I love you.”
My heart swelled and ached for her as I wrapped a large towel around her body. She held up her arms, letting me wrap her tightly in the cotton, her eyes staring into my soul with nothing but love. I loved her too. I didn’t say it. But I did love her.
“Don’t leave me,” she whispered.
I shook my head and smiled. There was no way I’d leave her now. “I’ll sneak out early in the morning.”
It felt natural in the bed beside her, our bodies fitting so perfectly together. I stayed awake, watching her struggle with sleep for at least an hour before my own eyes closed and I drifted off.
This was exactly where I wanted to be.
Where I needed to be.
CHAPTER TWENTY SIX
Katrina
The small man’s face, his hands, his wicked smile, pulled me from my rest. I slid up in bed, propping myself on the pillow against my headboard. Todd was still here. I couldn’t believe he’d actually stayed. Of course he did. I practically begged him not to leave me.
Todd Morris had a huge heart, and I’d broken it. I didn’t deserve him comforting me like this. He didn’t deserve to be pulled into my crazy world.
God, how I loved this man lying beside me.
It didn’t matter. Love wasn’t enough. We needed trust, but that was something we’d never have. Not after all the lies I told. I knew he'd heard me tell him I loved him last night, even though I said it softly. He didn’t respond. So, that was it. He didn’t love me. He felt sorry for me. Poor little Katrina, scared, roughed up, and shaking in his arms. That was all this was. He was too kind to let me suffer.
My eyes traced the outline of his masculine form under my sheets. Parts of my body still reacted at the memory of how he felt inside of me. One last time, to say goodbye forever? No. My heart couldn’t take the pain of losing him all over again.
I sighed as I realized the horror my life had become. My dad was still responsible for coming up with nearly a million dollars. If he didn’t, we both could end up dead. I knew part of my fate was to be raped by the small man with cold, dark eyes. Maybe the large one too before I was thrown to the bottom of the river with weights tied to my ankles. I saw enough gangster movies to know women didn’t usually just get shot in the head. They were played with first, and that man, he'd made his intentions clear enough with his dirty mouth against my skin.
Todd’s eyes opened slowly, his lips parted with a soft yawn, and then he rolled to his side. “Good morning,” he said through a huge yawn.
“Good morning.”
“How are you feeling?” he asked, laying his hand to my thigh. I twitched, my body responding to the familiar touch.
“Thank you for everything,” I sighed.
His hand pulled away. He slid up on the bed, sitting to face me. “I’m glad you called me, Kat.”
I knew that was another one of his kindnesses. I had to let him off the hook. He couldn’t be so cruel as to walk away from me now. I didn’t want his pity. He didn’t respond to my declaration of love last night. He didn’t love me. He pitied me.
“I have a lot to deal with today. I appreciate you taking care of me, but I will be fine from here,” I said, my fingers twisting together.
His eyes narrowed as he stared at me with confusion, and… what was that, hurt?
“What do you plan to do?” he asked sternly.
“I shouldn’t have dragged you into this mess, Todd. It’s my personal life, and it’s best we keep things strictly professional between us,” I said with an assertiveness that even I found too cold.
He pushed the sheets back, stood from the bed, and began gathering his clothes. I watched as he dressed hastily, and yes, there it was again… hurt in his eyes. “I’m sorry,” I said.
“No. You’re right. I don’t belong in your personal life. You made that really clear the first time around, why would it be any different now?” he snapped, sliding on his jeans and rushing from the bedroom.
I ran after him, the
sheet my only cover. “Todd, wait,” I called out, deciding my heart couldn’t take the pain of knowing I’d hurt him again. I didn’t mean to. I'd only wanted to let him off the hook, release him from his act of kindness.
He slung open the door to reveal Lana standing in the doorway. “Good morning,” she snarled and took a step back, waving at the hallway. “Don’t let me stop you from your walk of shame,” she hissed.
“It’s not what it looks like,” Todd defended. He looked back at me, remorse in his eyes.
“It’s okay,” I said softly, then gave him a small smile.
He nodded and strode out into the hallway, closing the door quietly behind him. Lana laughed as the door clicked shut, staring at me with judgmental eyes. I felt vulnerable in only my sheet but had nowhere to escape. She was in my living room, sizing me up. It was obvious she was enjoying my discomfort as she made herself comfortable on my couch.
“Looks like having a rich daddy isn’t enough for you. You want it all,” she gloated in her glory.
“It’s not what you think, Lana.”
“Oh, it’s exactly what I think. You’re never pleased, little Kitty-Kat. Are you? All your daddy’s money, all Rhett’s attention, now you want to work your way through the players one by one?”
“What the fuck are you talking about?” I snapped.
“You’re a little attention whore, aren’t you? I should’ve known by your posts. All those pictures of you surrounded by rock stars. Were you their encore?” she laughed.
“You’re way out of line,” I said sternly.
“No, you’re out of line. And now, you’re out of a job, my sweet Kit-Kat. I don’t keep whores on the payroll.”
I was stunned. Fired? She'd just fired me? Could she even do that?
“I’ll book you on the next flight to New York. You’ll need to clear out of the player condo within twenty-four hours.” She stood from her position, smiled, and walked toward the door.
“Oh, and Kat, don’t waste any time with goodbyes. I’ll let the team know you're gone and why, of course.”
She shut the door behind her, leaving me to stew in my anger, my humiliation, and my desperation. I needed this job. Needed Todd. It was all I had.
