Wild Cards

by R. C. Stephens

  “Yeah, it was nice of Bryce to put me up here,” she said, biting her lower lip. As my eyes gazed down to her plump lip and then lower to her chest for a brief moment. I could tell she wasn’t wearing a bra by the way her perky nipples were showing through her shirt. I needed to tame the beast in my pants down.

  “So, when did you find out that he was your father?” I asked, hoping I was not pushing too much while trying to distract myself from reaching over and claiming those lips. She still seemed tense, and I had Wellington to blame for that. I would take care of Scott Wellington on my own time. I didn’t want to upset her more than she already was.

  “When my mother died. She wrote me a letter and she left it for me. Inside was the truth about my paternity. A part of me felt angry that she had kept such an important detail from me, but that anger quickly dissolved because I knew she felt like she would be rocking our solid family by breaking the news. My papa, Tony, back home raised me from when I was six months old. He was the only father I ever knew. I think she didn’t want to hurt him by taking me away. We were a close family,” she explained looking down at her tangled fingers. It was hard for her to talk about her past, but I appreciated that she was opening up to me.

  “So the first time you met him was the other day in his office when you presented yourself as a journalist?” I asked with a playful grin.

  “Yeah,” she blushed. “You were there to witness me at my finest moment, Luc,” she said with a playful smile and a hint of sarcasm in her tone. We both eased into conversation and seemed to relax. I still needed to ask her more about Scott Wellington. He was the real reason I was here tonight. That and I liked spending time with her.

  “Vicky, I want you to tell me about Scott…I need to know exactly what he’s holding over you, if I’m going to protect you…” I said carefully and her eyes got the deer in the headlights look.

  “Luc, you don’t need to protect me, or feel like you need to, I will handle this…” she wrapped her arms around herself and shivered, only she didn’t look cold.

  “I know I don’t need to, but I want to. Besides I could tell how scared you were today when he was waiting for you in the lobby.” Suddenly the rims of her eyes turned red and they filled with tears. She bowed her head forward then shook it back and forth like she was trying to rein in her emotions. “Please don’t cry, pretty girl…” I said swiping at her eyes. “Please let me help you.” In this moment when I was begging her to let me in, I felt like I could never hurt her because I only wanted to see this girl smile, she had been through too much at such a young age.

  “Luc, I told you I’m messed up. You don’t need this or me.”

  “Vicky, let’s not put any pressure on ourselves here,” I began to say, knowing that I was repeating Dr. Davies' words. But the truth was that they sounded good and made me feel better. “Don’t worry about what this means. I get it we are both not in a place to commit, but I still need Scott out of your life especially since he is threatening you.”

  Sitting on the couch next to her, her small body looked rigid and she shivered. “Tell me, Vicky, please.”

  She took a few breaths, almost like she was forcing herself to just breathe. “When I went home with him I didn’t even know his name. Those things didn’t matter,” she explained, as her gaze drifted up to mine, she looked embarrassed. I nodded my head willing for her to continue. “I thought I was going to have a one night stand. Fun, easy and no one to deal with in the morning. Like I said earlier, my life had turned upside down so quickly, I had no processing time. It was one bad thing after another and I was cracking. I never expected Scott to be into heavy BDSM, though. I didn’t really know much about it but for some reason he thought I was on board. I was a stupid girl. I should have turned around and left the moment I saw the shackles. It wasn’t for me, I just wanted to feel numb, I was looking for an escape,” she explained and her words turned my blood cold. Did I hear her right? The man had shackles? I clenched my fists at the side of my thighs, but I couldn’t show her how much it hurt me to hear that someone did that to her. Instead I closed and opened my eyes acknowledging that I understood her, that I knew what it was like to look for a way to numb the pain.

  “He beat me so bad and…” she paused. The fact that she paused meant that he did something unfathomable.

  “Tell me,” I urged, as my thumb slowly caressed her hand.

  She nodded her head and the sobs grew louder. I didn’t need her words to confirm what I already knew. “He raped you.” I said it as a statement and she completely broke down. Once again, I embraced her as I caressed her back gently and whispered in her ear that everything would be okay. I have never wanted anything more than to make her life okay. She’d been beaten down too much.

  She pulled away from me and I didn’t understand what she was doing at first, but then she turned around and lifted her shirt. My jaw clenched when I saw the marks that animal left on her back. I couldn’t help but run my fingers over her rough scars. My heart broke thinking of what she must have been through, what Alexis must have been through, first with her mother and then with me. My past always came back to haunt me, even then sitting there with Vicky. I was a bad man. She was good and pure. I should leave. I would have left if she hadn’t needed my help.

  “Vicky, I am so sorry for what that monster did to you, but you were in a bad place, this isn’t your fault. If Bryce knew he was blackmailing you, if he knew he raped you, he would have that guy put away for a long time.”

  Her eyes widened again. “Please promise me you won’t tell Bryce. We have only just met, and I don’t want him to think badly of me.”

  “Bryce has opened his world up to you, Vicky, I don’t think he would turn his back on you for this, but your secret is safe with me. I will deal with Wellington on my own.”

  “Luc, I don’t want you getting into any trouble because of me either, maybe he will just go away.”

  “Men like Wellington are opportunistic. I can’t let him get away with what he did to you. I will make a phone call and get him checked out, and then we need to find out where he keeps his video footage.”

  I stood up and walked over to the corner of the room. I was going to make the call later but after hearing what he did to her, my fists were clenching with the need to inflict pain on this man. For the first time in a long time I felt like I was back in the family business making calls to check on people. I called an old contact. After two rings he picked up. “Ronaldo, it’s Luc Blanchard,” I drawled into the phone, feeling my blood pumping hard. Not because I was nervous but because I wanted to wring Scott Wellington's neck. I haven’t felt this kind of rage in a long time and I knew I needed to calm down.

  “Luc, long time, no speak…” Ronaldo answered. I debriefed him on the situation and gave him some orders to follow through on. I also told him that I would reward him even more if he didn’t mention this phone call to my father. I had been out of the business for two years now, and calling in a contact would probably not be deemed acceptable in my father’s eyes. It could also send the wrong message that I wanted back in, when I clearly did not.

  Vicky got up to open the door; it was the sushi delivery guy. I was surprised Tim didn’t call first, that’s not cool. I paid the delivery guy and walked back into the apartment with two plastic bags in my hand.

  “Are you hungry?”

  “Who was it on the phone, Luc?” she asked nervously.

  “Just a guy… I want to get Wellington checked out, if he has the tapes then I want to make sure we destroy all evidence,” I explained.

  “Thank you,” she breathed out.

  “You don’t need to thank me, Vicky, you just need to eat with me now. For some reason you always catch me when I’m starving.” My eyes glittered with mischief at my double meaning.

  Her eyes danced with the same mischievous gaze. “Of course, I’ll sit and eat with you.” She took the bags from me and placed them on the coffee table. “Can we eat here or do you prefer the kitchen
?”

  “No, the couch is good.”

  We both broke into the bags, we were clearly hungry for real food, although Vicky opted for the vegetarian rolls.

  We sat back and ate the sushi. I felt more relaxed and I thought she did too. I realized that I wanted to know so much more about her.

  “So tell me about yourself.” I smiled.

  “What do you want to know?” she asked nervously.

  “I don’t know…you seem like a smart girl, are you in college?” At my question her lips turned down.

  “Why do you keep referring to me as a girl, Luc? It’s irritating the shit out of me…I’m twenty-two years old,” she said with a tone that oozed attitude.

  “It’s not that I think you are a girl, it’s that I need to think that you are a girl so that you will stay off limits to me,” I admitted hesitantly.

  “What does that mean?” she snapped.

  “It means that as much as I want you, I know I can’t have you. Even this thing with Scott Wellington reinforces the fact that I can’t have you.”

  “How?” she asked, as her forehead creased and she squinted her eyes. Even confused she was beautiful.

  “Because, Vicky, I am a monster. I have done bad things too,” I said with defeat in my tone. As much as I tried to be good, it always comes down to my sins.

  “Luc, you’ve been watching out for me since the day I met you. You can’t be that bad. You need to be more forgiving of yourself. Besides this is just friendship here, right?” she asked. I knew she needed the confirmation because I did too. So even though my dick went hard just watching her I confirmed…

  “Yeah, Vicky, we are just friends. I’m looking out for you,” I answered, wanting to believe in those words more than anything. Really, I wanted to undress her, knowing she wasn’t wearing a bra under her shirt and wondering if she was commando too. Luckily, I had put on a pair of boxers to tame my beast down.

  “So what did you do today, Luc?” she asked clearly trying to keep the conversation friendly. Only the answer was going to be more than she expected.

  “I went to a gala I hold every year to raise money for an abused women’s shelter that I started up two years ago. The gala was at the Plaza Hotel this afternoon and we raised two million dollars. We beat last year’s record. The shelter is called, 'A Place to Go' and it basically provides food and shelter for abused women with their children. With the funds we raised today, we will be able to help these women get on their feet once they leave the shelter. That means finding them a new apartment in a new town so their abuser can’t find them and helping them with jobs, furniture, and food.”

  Once I finished speaking I realized she had stopped chewing her food. “And you say you are bad because…”

  “Vicky, you don’t know what my intentions are for setting this up. The shelter is to make me feel better about my past mistakes. It’s not selfless; it’s selfish. I am not a good guy. Keep remembering that as we eat because you will need to stop me from coming on to you at some point this evening if I hang out any longer.”

  “You keep saying you're bad and I get you’ve made some mistakes in your past but can’t you forgive yourself? You’re clearly a good guy and you go out of your way to help people. There has to be a time where you need to let whatever you did go,” she said, admonishing me.

  “Are you ready to let go of your past, Vicky? Are you ready to figure out what’s happening between us?”

  Her green eyes go round and she popped a rice and avocado roll into her mouth. “No, Luc, I’m not ready,” she admitted sounding defeated. We continued to eat our meal quietly. I thought she would have more questions for me about why I run the shelter, but maybe her own imagination was running wild so I let things be.

  Once we were finished eating, I cleaned up and put the leftovers in her fridge. “Are we on for dinner tomorrow?” I asked, hoping the answer would be yes.

  “Why?”

  “Because I enjoy your company, is that not enough?”

  “Yeah it’s enough, Luc. Dinner tomorrow, same place same time.”

  I moved in close to give her a kiss and I noticed how her breathing quickened. My own heart was beating fast. I wanted nothing more than to wrap her in my arms and tell her that everything will be okay, but I didn’t know that it would be, and I’m done making promises I couldn’t keep. I gave her a small kiss on the forehead as I took in the fresh smell of her shampoo. Her eyes closed and then opened. When she looked into my eyes, her own eyes were soft and caring.

  “Thanks for helping me, Luc.” Her lips curved up and my chest warmed at the sight of her smile.

  “It’s my pleasure, Vicky,” I grinned and turned away. “Lock your door.”

  I entered the elevator and pressed the button for the twenty-fourth floor. My heart had been left behind on the twenty-third floor. I knew I needed to do something drastic because as much as I wanted to help her, I would be no good for her. She has been broken and beaten. She didn’t need to know the likes of me.

  Chapter 12

  Vicky

  I woke up in a large comfortable bed feeling lonely and horny. I thought I might have had more than one wet dream about Luc and the many ways he could get me off. My body and mind were clearly at war because my mind said that Luc was right, neither of us were in a position to commit. Yet my heart was calling out for something else and breaking down my defenses in the process.

  I quickly went through my morning routine, knowing that I needed to be at Bryce’s office that morning to start my internship. He hadn’t gone into any detail about what would be involved and I had already agreed. The man was good at convincing people.

  ***

  Twenty minutes later I was dressed in a pair of black skinny jeans and a short sleeve turquoise blouse. It was the most professional outfit I had on such short notice.

  Derek was waiting for me on cue at nine o’clock sharp to drive me over to Tyson, which was luckily a short drive in the morning traffic.

  As I made my way up to the fortieth floor my stomach turned, wondering if Scott Wellington would be in the building and wondering if Luc would really be able to find those tapes. The thought of being outed publicly sent me into fits of panic. Walking briskly through the busy lobby I took in all corners of it, but Scott was nowhere in sight. I was relieved when the elevator filled up with people so that there was no chance for him to be alone with me. As the elevator climbed more and more people stepped off and fear began to claw its way up my throat at the thought of him finding me.

  When the elevator finally landed on the fortieth floor, I felt slightly sweaty and relieved that Scott hadn’t found me. I stepped out of the elevator to walk down the long hallway to Bryce’s office, as memories of the wretched night that Scott raped me invaded my mind. Walking up to the secretary’s desk I asked to see Bryce and was nervous to find out if Scott had already been here and revealed the truth or even worse, if he would have had the nerve to blackmail Bryce.

  “Of course, Vicky…he’s waiting for you, he is just finishing up with someone,” the secretary replied with a kind smile. She knew my name…wow… I took a seat in the waiting room. I could hear Bryce’s voice from down the hall telling someone that he would be in touch. Then he walked out to the waiting room and when his gaze landed on me, his eyes were warm. I returned his gaze with a smile but my stomach dropped when I saw the man he would be in touch with was Scott Wellington. My heart suddenly felt like it would burst out of my chest and my throat felt like a noose was tied around it. Scott spotted me out of the corner of his eye but didn’t pause. He continued walking giving me a brief wink that only I noticed.

  “Vicky,” Bryce said, extending his hand for me to join him. I walked toward the office putting one foot in front of another. I was shaking from the inside out. I know I’d paled and I hoped that Bryce didn’t notice, but I was thinking fat chance. We entered Bryce’s large office and I felt small, like the small town girl that I was in the large extravagant space. I took a seat
in the chair situated in front of his desk and he leaned back on his desk.

  “Are you okay? You look a little pale?” he asked. Yes, I look pale I just came face to face with my attacker, who is now blackmailing me.

  “Uh yeah,” I picked at a non-existent piece of lint off my pants and felt Bryce’s eyes boring into me. He looked from me to the door and ran his hand along his chin. I didn’t think he would be that observant to notice the effect Scott had on me. Men don’t notice small details.

  “Vicky, how are you? Did you get settled into the apartment okay, last night? I meant to call you to check in but I had a teleconference with China that lasted longer than I expected.” He spoke fast, but his grey eyes were warm and soft as he smiled kindly. I was relieved that he didn’t pay my physiological situation any more attention. I was still dizzy and my breaths were fast and clipped, but I tried to remain focused on his words.

  “Thanks, Bryce, the apartment is more than I could have dreamed of. You are too generous. I would like to return your credit card though, that won’t be necessary,” I said politely, not wanting to offend his kind gesture. I put my hand into my purse searching for the card and then pulled it out. “Here.”

  “Vicky, I know you didn’t want special treatment but all my kids have a credit card that I pay, you wouldn’t be any different in that regard,” he explained. He was wearing a tailored blue suit and his demeanor seemed light and relaxed as his hands were tucked into his front pockets.

  “Really, Bryce, I would feel more comfortable if I could return it to you,” I said, extending the card to him.

  “Just keep it, you don’t have to use it yet. Whenever you feel comfortable, then you might like to use it,” he suggested, tilting his head to the side just staring at me. “You really do look a heck of a lot like your mother.” His lip quirked up to the side. I could tell he’s sad.

  “I know, I get that a lot. Sometimes it’s hard to look in the mirror, it makes me miss her more,” I admitted.