by M. Stratton
“Well, well, we got lucky.”
“I don’t believe in luck.”
“No, my friend, you don’t; you make it.”
“And I do it very well.”
“And it’s helped us many times over the years. Let’s make sure it continues.”
“How long are we keeping the old bat alive?”
“Just long enough.”
“Good, I can smell by her scent she’s not going to make it much longer anyway.” He sniffed the air, walked over to her, and sniffed again. “Cancer, love?” He tsked his tongue. “You know you already have one foot in the grave, well actually, you are almost buried alive in it.” He paused, patting her cheek and wiped a tear away. Bringing his thumb up to his mouth, he sucked the tear off and closed his eyes. “Why is it the tears of death’s door taste so beautiful?”
Stormy froze with the book Bender had given her in her hands. That was the last thing in the room. She looked at Bender who had his duffle over one shoulder and her bag in his hand. Stupid, she thought, she should have at least been carrying her bag, which would give Bender more of a chance to defend them. Why hadn’t she taken more self-defense classes? She knew the neighborhood she worked in. Why didn’t she learn how to shoot; she could have been his backup.
A text chirped from Bender’s pocket filling the space with sound. Her breath hitched, she was sure everyone in a mile radius could have heard it. He twisted and looked from her hand to his pocket, then back to the door, never taking his eyes off it. She assumed he meant for her to get his phone and look at the text, or call for help. Knowing it was going to be quick to check the text, she did.
“We’re fine,” she said. Bender’s head whipped toward her and she held his phone up. “Bertie is at the door. Whoever that is.”
Bender’s whole stance changed, his shoulders rose and fell, relaxing as much as they ever did. Putting her bag down, he drew his gun and walked toward the door careful to keep to the side. Placing his finger over the peephole, she could see him count to ten before looking out for himself. He must have liked what he saw because he opened the door and an older gentleman came in.
“’Bout time.” He handed Bender a set of keys.
“Sorry, we were finally able to get some sleep and missed all the texts.”
“Get a move on.” He walked further into the room and went to the bed that was still made and sat down on it with his back against the headboard. Opening a book, he ignored them.
“Stormy.”
She turned back to Bender, her face red. There was only one bed used last night. Everyone was going to know they did it. Ducking her head, she picked up her bag and went to Bender waiting for him to tell her what to do next.
Quietly, he said, “Hook a finger in my belt loop. Stay to the side and slightly behind me. Make sure you are paying attention to everything, including reflections. We’re going directly to a car you’ve never seen before. Just get in, don’t talk unless you see something, and then whisper. And if I tell you to do something, do it. Don’t question, just do it.”
Nodding because she couldn’t look up at him, she hooked a finger through his belt loop. When they moved, she brought her eyes up and started scanning. The blood was rushing so loudly through her veins she couldn’t rely on her hearing. The deeper they moved through the building and out into the garage, the louder the ringing in her ears became until she was worried she wouldn’t be able to hear Bender’s commands if anything went wrong.
When they came to the car, he quickly opened it. They both shoved the luggage in the trunk, went around, opened the doors, and got in. Once in, he wasted no time getting them out of the garage and moving deeper into the heart of the city. The traffic would be worse, but then, it would also be worse for anyone who might be following them, too. Still, she did not speak to him. She had no idea where they were going or what was coming next; she was thankful he was here to help her.
The more distance and time they put between themselves and the hotel, the more relaxed she became. The more relaxed she became, the more she thought about last night. She had no idea he’d react that way. She was only looking for answers, not to push him into kissing her. In her heart, she hoped it meant something. The romantic in her demanded it, but she also knew what she read about men, not to mention her own past with them. Sometimes a willing body was all they saw. If he were horny, it wouldn’t have mattered who pushed him.
“Stop. Just stop.”
“Stop what?” She started to look at him, and then couldn’t, and faced forward.
“Shit.” He jerked the steering wheel to the right and braked hard. Immediately, she thought someone was behind them and turned to see. She only made it so far when Bender grabbed her by the chin and forced her to look at him.
“Last night was not some casual fuck for me. I’m too old for that.” He continued before she could say anything. “Yes, I’m a man and I’ve had casual fucks before, more when I was younger; this was not that. You have to stop over-processing everything.”
“Don’t put words in my mouth.”
“Lady, I don’t have to. You know I’m right.” He leaned in close to her, his voice dropped. “Besides, that’s not what I want to put in your mouth.”
Grabbing the back of her neck, he pulled her closer and kissed her with all the stress of the past hour feeding his passion. As they both fought for control of the kiss, she could feel her fears leaving her and her body starting to melt.
When he pulled away, he rested his forehead on hers. “Stormy, believe me when I say, there’s never been anyone like you. You’ve taken me to places I never thought I’d go. You’ve calmed my soul. This is a big change for me; you have to give me some time to sort things out. Right now, my number one priority is to keep you safe. I can’t; no, I won’t put you in danger. My head has to be in the game.”
“Sure seemed like your head was in a different game a minute ago.” Her face flamed when she realized what she said.
He laughed. “It sure was, and I know it will be again. We have to be a little bit smarter about it. Necking like a couple of teenagers on the side of the road isn’t the best thing to do.”
“I guess you’re right.” She smirked at him. “Although, that experience can’t be tossed aside.”
“No, no, it shouldn’t be.” He checked his mirrors and pulled back onto the road. “Do you have to go into the bookstore today?”
“I should . . .”
“You should, but . . .”
“But I won’t.” She sighed.
“I know, but it won’t be forever. You could ‘hire’ some new employees to keep it open for you while this is going on.”
“I’d still worry about them and feel responsible if something went wrong.”
“Something always goes wrong; you can’t take the blame for everything.”
“Anyway, I think we should try to find Donnie.”
“Stormy, I’m not going to hunt the kid down. Trust me; you can only do so much. It’s the sad truth, but the kid has to be willing to do some of the work. The system is only going to go so far without some drastic measures being taken.”
“I think he might be ready. He came in looking for you yesterday.” She couldn’t believe it was just yesterday; so much had happened between now and then.
“Really?” He picked up his phone and without taking his eyes off the road, hit a couple of buttons, and made a quick phone call. “There. Wheels are set in motion. I already had an extra set of eyes on the kid. Now we’ll find out more about his family and see what we can do to help him.”
She couldn’t help it; tears flowed down her cheeks. She’d been so worried for him and at a loss for what she could do, but now, with Bender, she’d be able to do something to help him. “Thank you.” She tried to control herself before she started the whole, ugly cry thing, but knew it was a lost cause when he grabbed her hand and brought it to his lips to kiss it.
Bender didn’t know what to do with the sobbing woman next to him.
He had to admit the kid Donnie pulled at his old, cynical heartstrings, and it would seem Stormy’s pure ones too. He hoped they could do something for the kid. She really did have a heart of gold and wanted to help the kids.
He remembered ladies like her when he was growing up; he hated every one of them. He wondered if it was her, or just seeing her through adult eyes, which made him realize not all of them were bad. Some of them did want to help, deep down; and yes, others were just in it for how good it made them look, but not all. Maybe it was just the ones he came in contact with as a kid, but there had been no Stormy for him. He was glad the kid realized what a good person she was, and was going to reach out to her through him. They’d do whatever it took to keep the kid safe and get him out from where he was.
Seeing the sign for the upscale hotel, he pulled in on a whim. She didn’t deserve average run of the mill motels and hotels, she deserved spas, and those fluffy towels women go crazy over. Stopping at the front door, he turned to her. “How about we work from home today?”
“Here?” Her eyes were wide.
“Why not?”
“Sure, why not.” She still didn’t move.
He couldn’t hide his smile as he got out of the car and pulled their bags from the trunk. He came around to her side of the car and opened her door for her. “My lady.”
“Seriously?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Without another word, which he took as a win, she placed her hand in his and gracefully stood up next to him. He couldn’t help it; he loved that the book he’d given her hadn’t strayed far from her hands since he handed it to her. Even now, she had the book in one hand and his in the other. He was thankful he’d lugged that old book around with him all these years. He’d found it in a second hand bookstore soon after he’d started working with Murdoch. Even with how much he loved his Kindle, he’d never gotten rid of the old thing. Like Stormy said, there is just something about an actual book, especially an old one. Seeing her pleasure in it, he knew he’d made the right decision giving it to her. If he believed in fate, he would have thought it was meant to be hers all along. He was just holding it for her.
Since there was no going into the bookstore today, Stormy spent the day working on her other properties, firming up the renovations schedule. They worked in silence together. She had no idea what he was doing, but she hoped it had to do with Mick and Nutter being put away. As much as it pained her, because Bender would be leaving, she did want her life back.
She sat back on the couch in the living room of their suite and looked out the window at the low hanging clouds over the vast expanse of Lake Michigan. Stormy wondered what was going to happen when they went to bed since there were two bedrooms. She looked over to their bags, still packed by the door. After what happened this morning, neither of them wanted to get too comfortable.
Bender sat, his head bent over his laptop, furiously pounding on the keys. She wondered what had made him who he was. There was an email in her inbox with a file on him; she had yet to open it. Did she really want to know every dirty little secret, or would she just go on what he told her, and what she felt from him? Knowing he probably had a similar file on her made her uneasy. She knew it was a job for him, and the file would help, but it felt like such an invasion to her. That was the last thing she’d want to do to him. She clicked the button to delete the email, deciding she knew everything she needed to know.
Grabbing her book, she got up, went to the fireplace, and flipped the switch to start it burning. Placing her book on the chair, she moved it so she’d be able to curl up, read, and see both the fire and out the large window. She frowned when Bender got up, moved the end table closer to her, and moved the light. She smiled at him. She’d been too stressed last night to read the book he’d given her, but now she decided was the right time. Slowly, she opened the book and ran her hand over the page, imagining everyone who’d read the book before her doing the same thing. Immediately, she became lost in the old volume, absently shifting in the chair and reaching over to take a drink of water. The world could have ended outside the window and she’d never know.
When a plate of food was shoved under her nose, she jumped. “Oh, what time is it?” She took the plate from him and rolled the tightness out of her shoulders.
“Dinnertime.”
“Dinner?” She was surprised when she looked out the window and it was pitch black. “Well, when did that happen?” She laughed at herself. “You do know I’m a bookworm, right?”
“How long have you gone like that?”
“I don’t really keep track. If the book is good, I go until I’m done with it. Could be a couple of hours, sometimes a lot more.”
“If I hadn’t interrupted, how long would you have gone now?”
She glanced down at the book and tried to gauge how much she had read and how much was left. Granted the sonnets read faster than the plays, but it still would have taken hours to finish. Somehow, she didn’t think he’d really want to know that. “A while.”
“You need a keeper.”
Narrowing her eyes at him she huffed, “I’ve made it this long alone.”
“I don’t see how.”
There was something about his tone she didn’t like. Opening her book back up, she started reading again, blocking him out. Before long, he had disappeared to her because she was lost again in the book.
“Everything in place?” Mick asked.
Nutter grinned. “Oh, yes. I can’t wait. This is pure genius. Now we wait.”
“What are your plans for her?” He gestured over his shoulder at Stormy’s neighbor, the old woman who was slumped over in the chair.
Nutter shrugged. “She’s not going to make it much longer. I might just see if I can scare her to death; really, it won’t take much at all. Saying ‘boo’ too loud may just push her over the edge. However, I was thinking we should do something with her, a statement piece if you will. Once we have Stormy, they’ll come in here and find the old bat’s maggot infested body dripping and decomposing.” He started looking around the room. “Ahhh . . . yes, that will be poetic, don’t you think?” He walked over to the built-in bookshelves. “Now exactly how are we going to display her? We want to make sure we get her good side, although, working with someone so old is going to make it hard to have a good side. No matter, I’ll figure something out.”
“No, no, no and no, again,” Bender said to Stormy as he watched her pack the things she needed for the bookstore.
“We’ve been over this. I need to be there today.”
“And I said no.”
“And I said, do what you need to do to make it safe for me to go in, but I am going in.”
“I thought you’d listen when I told you no.”
She turned and placed her hands on her hips. “Really? I think I’ve been very accommodating during this whole situation, but I do have a business to run, and that business dictates I need to be there today. So suck it up, bucky, and do your thing. You know, protect me.”
“You didn’t used to backtalk so much,” he grumbled.
“You always were an ass.”
He couldn’t help it; he had to grin. “I never claimed to be anything else. But still. No.”
She sat down on the couch and stared at him. He narrowed his eyes at her, not completely trusting her. “You do understand you can’t leave here without me?” He stalked over to her, bent down, trapping her with his hands on either side of her, and met her eye to eye. “If you take a cab from here, they’ll be able to trace it. If you leave here, they’ll know. I wouldn’t suggest walking away from here and picking up a cab from somewhere else, you never know who’s out there.”
“I wasn’t thinking that.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
“Then what exactly were you thinking?” She blinked and looked at him, not saying anything. “Stormy, you’ve gone above and beyond since this whole thing started. Don’t do anything foolish now.”
“I wo
uldn’t dream of doing anything foolish.”
“Why don’t I believe that? Fine, give me a half hour to put everything in place and then we’ll head in that direction.”
She smiled and damned if she hadn’t been playing him, she was good. She’d already figured out what he’d do. “Lady, if I were you I’d be careful who you play.”
She batted her eyes at him. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“Stay put; I said I’d take you.”
“Yes, dear.”
He couldn’t control himself; he closed the distance and nipped at her bottom lip, smiling when she squealed. “Stay put.”
He straightened up and walked into the other room to make a phone call, keeping the door open so he could keep his eyes on her, still not fully trusting her. Once everything was in place, he grabbed their luggage and they made their way out of the hotel room. He tried to rationalize the thought of spending the night there again, but since they were going out, they couldn’t. They needed to stay somewhere else.
Stormy looked at the time again, knowing they were running short on time. She needed to be at the bookstore soon and Bender kept driving around in circles. She was sure he was doing it just to annoy her since she’d gotten her way.
“Got a hot date?”
She snorted. “No, it’s been a while since I’ve been there. I need to make sure everything is okay, and I’m sure the kids need more books. And I’m wondering how Donnie is doing, and—”
“I think I get the idea. Also, you’re going to have a couple of new employees starting today.”
“Wait, what? No.”
“Yes. It’s all part of the deal. This way, I can do what I need to do and not have to worry about you.”
Thinking about it, she knew he was right, but the thought of strangers running around her place didn’t sit well with her. “What qualifications do they have? Have they ever worked in a bookstore? What about customer service? Running a cash register? What about—”
