GRIPPED (Romance Mystery & Suspense Box Set)

by Abbott, Alex

  So she nodded, opening the door further and slipping inside, her eyes working their way up his body. Finally, she bit in her lower lip and when she let it pop back out, she said, “I’m glad you’re okay.”

  Jamal gave a gentle, warm smile, that one comment making his face light up with that usual handsomeness, washing away the dour expression and all its remnants. It left his sandy-brown complexion smooth and lovely again.

  “And you,” he husked. “Take care of yourself.”

  The sound of the motorcycles broke the moment again, revving so loud that any conversation became fruitless between that door crack.

  She rolled her eyes as she shut the door to the lobby and turned to the stairs, her shoes still dangling in her hand as she made her way up to her apartment.

  It was going to be impossible to sleep.

  Chapter 4

  The midday sky was bright and blue, and the sun shone on through the glass walls of the upscale bistro, helping add to Svetlana’s beautiful smile. The young woman was dressed up in a lovely pink skirt and pearlescent blouse outfit for her lunch time date.

  Javier, for his part, was dressed in another well-tailored suit, a thick European cut tie that contrasted the dark maroon paisley of his vest. His hand reached out to stroke along her knee and up her slender thigh.

  Their meal sat before them, finished but for a few bites and a little wine.

  “This is how I wish to spend all my lunches from now on,” Javier declared in a smooth, deep husk to the younger woman. “Gazing upon your bubbly, effervescent face,” he declared, leaning in with a tilted head to place a soft kiss upon her lips.

  She giggled, the sound like twinkling music as she gazed over him with her bright blue eyes.

  “You’re too much,” she teased, enjoying every moment of their time together. She shifted closer, nudging the chair over so he could better stroke her soft flesh. “But I vould like that. Very much.”

  A grin crossed his face, and he leaned in, kissing back along her cheek towards her ear. He teased that soft lobe with a graze of his teeth and murmured to her lowly.

  “I have a suite nearby we can visit. Someplace we can be ourselves, yes? No need to be secretive in there, just enjoy our time before we have to return to the world outside. How’s that sound?” he asked, letting his fingers slip under her skirt to crawl up her soft inner-thigh.

  She nodded, her blonde hair bouncing along her shoulders as her smile widened. She smelled of sweet cotton candy, and her flesh was so soft as her fingers touched his hand, guiding him up her thigh lewdly. Her legs parted for him, that light pink material bunching up around his wrist.

  “Now, sir?” she asked softly.

  His dark brown eyes began to light up and his head nod before his gaze was torn away to look worriedly at someone else. Svetlana followed his gaze, her head tilted and blonde hair cascading over her shoulder.

  Jamal strode up to their table, the newly released convict dressed in a sleek grey vest with a black shirt beneath, rolled up to the elbows again.

  “I need a moment of your time,” he said to Javier firmly, grasping the back of a chair across from him.

  For his part, Javier gave a hard look up at Jamal then glanced at Svetlana who looked fairly shocked at the interruption. She flushed so pink as she pulled away from Javier’s lewd touch.

  “She can stay,” Jamal said, as he pulled out a seat and sat down. “I won’t waste a lot of your time.”

  “How’d you even know to find me here?” Javier asked, brow raised.

  “Did you forget? I was always good at findin’ folks. For you,” he added somewhat pointedly.

  Svetlana did not often see Javier like that, so clearly perturbed but not willing to show it. It wasn’t quite like he was afraid of the man — although, perhaps a little — it was more like he was indebted to him, and afraid to act.

  “So what do you want?” Javier asked.

  “Simple,” Jamal stated, resting one hand upon the edge of the table before shooing away a waiter. “You owe me, and the car was a nice gesture,” he said simply, “but I want something more.”

  “I’ve already arranged a sizable payment for you,” Javier insisted. “Like I said last night, you’ll get it the rest of it soon.”

  “No no,” Jamal said, shaking his head. “I want something more substantial.”

  “It’s a lot of money already,” Javier said, gritting his teeth, though Jamal held up a hand defensively.

  “Not money. In lieu of money, I want a business of my own,” Jamal stated.

  “I thought you wanted out of the business?”

  “I did. And I still do,” Jamal insisted. “I want a legit business. A club of my own, like yours perhaps.”

  “Dance clubs aren’t exactly the most profitable of businesses, and they come at a heavy cost,” Javier stated. “But…” he trailed off, looking back to Svetlana then to Jamal. “I was preparing to buy a club. A strip club. I could make you co-owner.”

  “Full owner,” Jamal insisted. “I don’t wanna answer to anyone.”

  Javier bristled, but only for a second.

  “On one condition,” Javier said.

  “Name it.”

  “Appoint Lana here as day manager,” Javier said firmly.

  Svetlana looked to Javier, her eyes widened though her smile was so genuine and pure. She was clearly touched by the offer, glancing towards Jamal with renewed interest.

  Jamal took a moment to consider it, eying her over closely before nodding to Javier.

  “Done. But I’m the boss, and I wanna run it my way, she answers to me.”

  “Just treat my girl with respect, and we’ll be fine,” Javier insisted with a smile, squeezing Svetlana’s hand beneath the table. Jamal got up to leave but Javier insisted, “What made you change your mind?”

  “Well,” Jamal said, arching a brow and peering back at the two of them, “turns out I’ve got more of a debt to repay than I thought. What you offered won’t be enough. I gotta think long term.”

  Then with that, he simply strode off.

  Svetlana squeezed Javier’s hand back, her entire body vibrating a little bit. She could not be more excited, and when Jamal finally left, she let out a little squeal, almost knocking over the table as she went to hug Javier.

  “Oh my God!” she purred, a little ball of energy rubbing against his body.

  Javier put his arms around her, squeezing her tiny form in his long arms.

  “Now I’ve got the perfect excuse to come check up on you every day,” he remarked with a grin and a low chuckle.

  “And take me out to lunch, yes? How far is your secret hideaway from the new club?” she asked, though never did she stop or slow bouncing up and down against him. Svetlana was an open book of purity and joy, and it shone through.

  Javier picked her up out of her chair, kissing her on the lips before putting her back down, feet to the floor after he stood up.

  “Yes, and come on, I’ll show you,” he remarked with a sly grin.

  Chapter 5

  Angela woke late, to match the late night she had had. Tortured by both the troubling emotions that stormed within her and the roar of the motorcycles outside, it wasn’t until Romy called her that she awoke at last after lunch.

  His name flashed on the phone and his voice carried out quickly as she answered.

  “Hey chica, how are you doing today? Better I hope,” he said with that charmingly boyish concern in his voice.

  She felt hung over, her head pounding, but she knew that wasn’t it. She’d been drunk, but not hangover drunk. It was the tears that still burned beneath her lids, the way her head felt stuffed with cotton.

  “I’m just getting up,” she admitted, her voice harder with the sleep, her body aching everywhere as she pushed herself up from the bed. “How was your night?”

  “Oh, alright you know. Not what it could’ve been had my lady been there with me,” he said somewhat cutely. “Thought of you the whole night through thoug
h. And conversation. Even with the gossip of Jamal returning hot on people’s lips, your ass was ever a fond topic.”

  She laughed as she made her way to the bathroom, looking in the mirror at her tired, makeup stained eyes. She grabbed her makeup remover, dabbing it beneath them as she spoke.

  “Well it’s good to leave an impression,” she purred. “I’m just sorry our plans got interrupted.” Though secretly she wasn’t. She knew what she was like on drugs, and it clenched her stomach when she thought about how close she’d been to throwing it all away.

  Jamal had saved her from herself once more.

  “Well if you’re feelin’ up to it, how about we hook up this evenin’ and pick up where we left off? I could come get you around… five, six maybe?” he offered, his voice on the other end, sounding anxious. Eager for her even. Though something about it had lost its appeal.

  Was it in his voice or was it something that had changed in her? Did the arrival of the older, wiser and more capable Jamal change her opinion of Romy?

  She wasn’t sure. She pulled her hair back into a ponytail, washing her face free from the debris of the night before, trying to cleanse herself of more than just the old makeup.

  “I don’t think I can, lover,” she said, sounding more upset than she felt. “I’m still not up to partying. Rain check?”

  “Of course, chica,” he said, trying to sound cool, but she could detect the hint of disappointment there in his voice. “You take care of yourself, and I’ll be sure to check in on you real often. In case an opportunity comes to slip on in over there and spend some time with you,” he said it in a teasing voice, but it was easy to tell what he had in mind for her and him together.

  “Don’t worry, sexy. I still got your number,” she said with a purr. “We’ll talk later,” she added efore hanging up and putting both her hands on the sink.

  What on earth was she going to say to Jamal that night?

  Chapter 6

  Angela took the hottest bath she could, but that still didn’t make her feel clean. It wasn’t even just seeing Jamal for the first time in four years, or being given the bombshell that he’d been in prison for that time. And he’d broken her heart to protect her.

  No, it was the ten grand burning a hole in her pocket, and the fact that her feelings for Romy had instantly fizzled down to something more tepid and less exciting. She hated herself for the sudden change, and felt as if she’d used him just for the cash, but she knew that wasn’t true.

  She’d burned hot for him. He’d made her feel alive. As if she had purpose once more.

  But that couldn’t compare to the flame that Jamal had lit in her heart when she was so young and tender. She’d been around Romy’s age when she’d fallen for Jamal, and long years apart had apparently done nothing to dim that fire.

  She curled her hair into ringlets. He’d always liked her hair when it was curled, the long tendrils bouncing over her shoulder as she pulled on a more modest blouse and a skirt. At least her old work clothes weren’t going to waste, and maybe the itch of the pantyhose would distract her from those feelings she’d long denied.

  She kept her makeup light, and by the time she finished, she looked almost modest. When the clock struck six, though, she made him wait. After four years, there was no way she was going to be prompt for their reunion.

  Jamal didn’t know what apartment she was in, so all he could do was wait. Or cause a scene. But when she took a peek out at him, she found him waiting patiently by his new car. A fine vest and tie on, even though his shirt was still rolled up around his elbows, letting those two thick forearms show.

  He didn’t come with flowers, but she knew what he was like. He only showed with as little as he did because she’d asked him not to make a big deal of it.

  Jamal felt deeply for her, if any bit of what he said was true. But like in those years past, she had to give him consent to let that flame burn free before he scorched her with it.

  Relaxing outside against his car, he kept his arms folded over his chest, one foot rested back against the side of his vehicle as he studied the area, her building. Everything. She recognized that look on him, it was business. He was studying her area with the same intensity he put behind his work, all those years ago. Learning every little detail. So he’d never be caught at a disadvantage there.

  Angela finally made her way out, fifteen minutes late, more due to her own boredom and the way her stomach twisted. Maybe some decent food would sort it out, though she knew that to be a lie.

  She had slung on her leather jacket, her purse over her shoulder as she left her apartment building. For a second she hated how damn good he looked but she quickly brushed it aside as she waited for him to open her door.

  “Lookin’ so good as always,” he said to her with a smile, lifting his sunglasses from his eyes to appreciate her as he opened the door. “Crazy how little you’ve changed in the past four years,” he remarked, helping her in before making his way around to the driver’s seat.

  “Can’t say the same for you,” she said, though she was more appreciative of his changes than not. Prison had been strangely good to him. Fuck, most of the time she felt like she barely made it out alive, but there were always ways of making friends for someone like her.

  He took no apparent insult over her words, either inferring her true meaning or letting it slide as another deserved jab for leaving her as he did. Instead he pulled his car from in front of her building and began to drive.

  “Prison was a learning experience,” he said simply. “I’ve found a nice place to eat, I think you’ll like it. Not romantic or nothin’,” he assured her.

  “I trust you.”

  The words slipped out, unbidden, and she didn’t have time to take them back. They simply floated away from her, out of her control. She glanced out the window to try to pretend like nothing happened, as if it were just three meaningless little words, but she knew he was smarter than that.

  He let the remark go untouched, the two of them driving along in quiet. Though it wasn’t so much an awkward pause, because in many ways it felt so natural. Like the long drives and walks they’d taken together years ago.

  “I hope you got to sleep alright. Those fuckers made a ton of noise last night,” he remarked. “Would’ve done somethin’ about it, but they saw you. And even if I got them away no problem, they might’ve taken it out on you after.”

  That was Jamal. A macho man to be sure, but one who at least used his head a little.

  “It’s fine,” she said evenly, grateful for his respect of her vulnerability. “They’re always out there. I’ve almost gotten used to it. I think they run the bar by my place or something.”

  And besides, it wasn’t like they were what was keeping her up last night.

  She knew he wanted to say more on that. Probably wanted to remark on getting her out of there, offering her this or that to make it happen. She could see the tension in his face as he restrained himself.

  “I suppose the place we had shared years ago had its own issues like that. We were just too busy making ruckuses of our own to notice, huh?” he remarked, slowly cracking an amused grin.

  Oh, they’d had such times. From the two of them exploring every kink they could think of to the big parties and loud music.

  It was like college that was always shown on the TV, always midterm break every night. All of the people in their building were young and wild, just like them, with no apparent jobs or fear of retribution. Every day was a party.

  She smiled a little at the memory, the wonderful things they’d learned in one another during those more carefree days.

  Though she knew now that there were deeper concerns than she wanted to admit, even then.

  “Yea, well, when you’re up ‘til five every night...” she finally said.

  “Yeah, was different when we were kids,” he said, his deep voice so much harder than she remembered it, yet still so familiar. “All that time away gave me time to think on it though. To
realize what we did wrong, what we could do better. But I guess you know a bit about that too, huh?”

  She let out a dry laugh. “Something like that. Mostly thought about getting out. About what I was going to do to turn my life around. No more guys. No more partying. I’d be safe and clean, and wouldn’t have to worry about anything.” She knew her tone made it obvious that it hadn’t worked out as anticipated.

  More so since he found her at the Tropicala.

  “That was smart thinking,” he said, no irony, no mockery in his voice. “Came to a few similar conclusions myself. Except for the guy’s part, y’know I can’t lay off them pretty fellas,” he remarked with dry humour, looking over at her for a moment before he cracked a wry smile and pulled them into a parking spot nearby some quaint shops along a park area.

  “Yea, it’s been working out great for me so far,” she said, not in a hurry to get out of the vehicle, looking over at him. He was so damned cute with his little jokes and she forced her gaze away. “Except for the part where I got fired from pretty much the worst job to exist because of my record.”

  Jamal put the car into park and took the keys out. He reached out to touch his hand to her arm, right at her elbow, that warm, familiar feeling coming back to her.

  “It’s a setback, but it’s more my fault then yours. It’s because of me you got mixed up in shit you shouldn’t have. And then you had to crawl your way out. But don’t worry about shitty jobs you were too good for in the first place. We’ll fix all that,” he said with that certainty and authority he always had, undiminished by his time in prison.

  He got out of the car without further fuss, rounded about to open her door and help her out.

  “It’s just over here,” he said, pointing to a quaint little spot on the corner that looked more like a historical site than a restaurant.

  She resisted the urge to lace her arm into his as they walked, her heels more modest than the stripper heels she wore the night before, and she only came up to his mid-bicep.