by Alison Mello
Noah: Why not? I want to fix things between us.
Kara: There’s nothing to fix. I’m with Slade now, and although I’m really happy you’re straightening your life out, that’s not going to make us better. You need to get better for you, not for me.
Noah: That’s bullshit. I’m doing this for you.
Kara: You can’t. You have to do it for you.
Noah: Fuck that.
I sigh and start my car. I don’t know what else to say. I know he’s upset, and I understand, but he really does need to do this for no one but him. When I pull up to my parents’ house I’m happy it’s empty. I need some quiet time to think about my feelings for Slade and how I feel about everything that’s happening with Noah. I collapse on my bed, exhausted from the long weekend we’ve had. We’re supposed to go to Monday night dinner, but I really don’t feel like it.
My mind drifts and I begin to think back. I’ve been trying to figure out if there were signs I should have picked up on that told me Noah has been using and I just didn’t see them. I want to believe he didn’t start using until after we broke up, but it’s hard to tell because we spent so little time together toward the end. I can feel my eyes are getting heavy but I fight to stay awake. I don’t want to sleep, because I need to call Slade soon to let him know I’m not going tonight, but that he can go if he wants to. I would never stop him from seeing our friends. I yawn and roll over to plug in my cell phone. I quickly peek to see if Noah sent me any other texts, and when I see he didn’t, I place my phone on my nightstand.
I look around my room, thinking about how long it’s been since I’ve slept in my own bed. It almost feels weird to be here. I’ve been staying with Slade for a few weeks now. The funny thing is we fell into a comfortable routine so quickly. It’s like we were truly meant to be, and I just had to get over Noah to see it. Now Noah has himself in a mess and he needs to get himself out of it and quickly. I yawn.
“Noah, I don’t know what you want from me. I’m not going to get back with you,” I scream at him. He’s pacing the room with a knife in his hand. He’s panting and sweating. I’ve never seen him like this.
“I’m not giving up on us. I’m sorry I never told you that I loved you, but I do, and you will give me the opportunity to prove it to you.”
A tear rolls down my cheek. I’m scared and I don’t know what to do. I’m home all by myself and I’m not even sure how he got into the house. I was sure to lock it as soon as I got in. “Please, Noah, just go. I won’t tell anyone you were here. I promise.”
He laughs. “Do you really think I believe you? The second I leave you’ll run to Daddy and tell him all kinds of stories. He already hates me and you’ll make it worse.” He’s spitting as he talks. He steps closer, his eyes meet mine, and that’s when I realize he’s high as a kite.
“I thought you were going to get clean.”
“Why bother? You don’t want me anymore. When I’m high I don’t feel the pain from losing you.”
“Noah, please,” I beg.
“Please what? I said please, I’ve begged you to give me another chance, but you wouldn’t listen. You just keep throwing Slade in my face. Now you’re going to know what it feels like. Beg, bitch.” He grabs my hair and pulls me down onto my knees.
Tears start to stream down my face. I’m so scared. I have no idea if he’s going to rape me or kill me.
I jolt awake. “Kara, wake the hell up.”
I begin to sob as Slade sits down next to me and folds me in his arms. “God, I’ve been so worried about you.” He rubs his hands through my hair. “I had no idea where you were.”
“I’m sorry. I meant to come home to get some things and I must have fallen asleep.” I pull away. “How did you get in?”
“I called your father. He’s downstairs. What were you dreaming about?”
I tell him how Noah sent me the text today and it got me worried and apparently scared. I tell him about the nightmare and ask him if we can stay in tonight. Of course he agrees. I tried to tell him he could go and I would stay here but he wouldn’t hear of it. He sent Logan a text, letting him know that we weren’t going to make it.
Chapter 13
Kara
I’m pulling up to work at the gym when my phone rings. I check my phone to see it’s my dad. “Hey, Daddy.”
“Where are you?” he barks into the phone.
“I’m pulling up to the gym for work, why?” I suddenly find myself scared. His voice is panicked. I’m looking all around checking my surroundings.
“Are you alone?”
“Daddy, what’s wrong?” I snap.
“Is Slade with you?” he screams.
“No.” My voice is shaken and comes out in barely a whisper.
He sighs into the phone. “I want you to hurry inside while you’re still on the phone with me.” I climb out of the car and run into the gym, checking my back as I do.
When I get inside and I’m finally safe behind the counter, I ask again. “I’m inside, now will you tell me what’s wrong?”
“Noah has disappeared. We were supposed to meet this morning to go over the plan for getting to Higgins. He never showed up, and when the guys went by his place to check on him, it had been cleaned out. We have no idea where he is.”
I lean on the counter, resting my head in my hands. “Why did you guys release him?”
“We had nothing concrete to hold him on. He wouldn’t give us a sworn statement, and we couldn’t use what he told us at the club because he was high.” He sounds so defeated. “I’m sorry, honey. I had no choice.”
“I know, Daddy, and I’m sorry. I don’t mean to yell at you. I’m just tired and I want this over with.”
“I know. Try to have a good day at work and I’ll be in touch soon.” I cut the call and turn to find Colton directly behind me.
“Are you okay?” I can tell he’s concerned.
“Yeah, the situation with my ex is just getting out of control.” I place my phone into my back pocket. I look up at the clock and note my first client is going to be here shortly. I need to get my head in the game. This client is brand new to using a trainer and she doesn’t need someone whose head is all messed up.
“Come to my office.” He leads the way. The entire way there I’m praying I don’t get fired for bringing my troubles to work. This isn’t usually an issue for me, but this I can’t manage to leave at home, it keeps following me. He closes the office door behind us. “Take a seat.” I sit in the chair across from his desk and he sits in his desk chair.
“I’m really sorry, Colton. I swear I’m doing what I can to leave this outside of here.”
He puts his hands up to stop me. “First, you’re not in trouble. Take a deep breath for a second.” He waits for me to take a deep breath before he says more. “Better?” I nod. “Good. Now, tell me where this stands.”
I go into the story about how Noah was going to help us catch Higgins and now he’s disappeared. I tell him how I think it has to do with him being on drugs and that I told Noah things were done between us. A tear escapes me. “I’m sorry, Colton. I’m a bit embarrassed and I’m not sure how to handle this. I don’t want to lose my job. I enjoy working here.”
“We like you working here, but we can’t have this guy in the club. It’s not safe for you and it’s not good for the gym or our clients. I need to come up with a plan and I’m not sure what that’s going to look like yet.” I nod my head. I feel like such a fool right now. I’m sitting in my boss’s office crying because of the situation I’m in and I’m supposed to be out on the floor working with clients.
“Do you want to go home? We can tell your clients you’re sick and have them work with someone else for today.”
I sigh. “Honestly, I’m not sure what I should do. I don’t want to be stuck at home but I’ll admit I’m nervous.”
He leans back in his chair and crosses his leg at his ankle. “Why don’t you call your boyfriend? I’ll give you some privacy. Talk to him and see what you guys come
up with. When you’re done, come out onto the floor and I’ll support your decision either way.”
He leaves the room and I grab my cell phone from my back pocket. It was on silent, so I hadn’t realized that it had been ringing, and I have about a million text messages from Slade. I don’t bother reading them, I call him right back.
“Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. I’m sorry I worried you. My phone was on silent in my back pocket. I’m in my boss’s office. We were talking about the situation and what I should do.”
“Cole is on his way there. If your boss will allow him to pretend he’s working out in the gym, you can stay. He’ll keep an eye on you and then make sure you get back home safely when you’re done. We need to talk about how we’re going to handle this until both Noah and Higgins are caught. I have a plan but I have to talk to my boss first.”
“Slade, please don’t do anything stupid.” I sniffle from the tears that have been running down my face.
“I’ll do whatever I have to do to keep you safe. Please, just do me a favor and listen to Cole.”
“What are you going to do?” I’m scared he’s going to go after them himself and I don’t want that. He could not only get hurt, but he could get himself into a ton of trouble.
“Nothing today. I promise, but I need to start working on the plan to nail these bastards. You get your work done and I’ll see you at home tonight.”
“Okay.” I cut the call, grab a tissue from the box on his desk, and clean myself up. When I have myself under control, I walk out to the front of the gym where I find Cole is already here and it makes me feel safer already.
“Cole.” I run to him. He gives me a friendly hug.
“Are you okay?”
“I’m better now that you’re here, thanks.”
“What are you going to do?” Colton asks, standing beside us.
“Are you okay with Cole being nearby?”
“I told him that was fine with me as long as he’s discreet. I can’t have your clients freaking out because you guys are being followed around the gym.” Cole tells him that with the way the gym is set up with the mirrors and everything, he can stand a bit of a distance and still ensure that I stay safe. This appeases him, so I agree to stay for my shift. I missed working with my first client, and I have ten minutes before my next client comes in. I pull out her workout sheet and take a look at what we’re doing today. I fill Cole in on the machines we’ll be doing, and he takes off into the gym.
Soon my client comes walking over from the elliptical drenched in sweat. “Hey, girl. You ready to do this?” She wipes the sweat from her face with a towel and fist bumps me as we walk into the gym. We start with some squats. I set up the bar, she steps in front, setting it up on her shoulders before she backs away and bangs out twelve solid squats. “That was too easy. Bump the next set to fifteen.” She smiles and nods, but does it. “Good, now twenty.”
She laughs. “My ass has to be able to walk tomorrow.”
I laugh. “You use your legs to walk, not your ass.”
She shakes her head. “I see you have jokes today.”
“I try.” I chuckle.
She approaches the bar and does her last set of twenty. While she does, I can see Cole out of the corner of my eye approaching a machine that’s next to the one we’ll be doing. “Good. Let’s hit the leg curl.” We walk over, talking about her day and what her weekend was like. A lot of my clients talk personal stuff as they work out. It’s kind of nice, because I get to know them as people not just a number. When I’m done with my client and I get back to my desk, I find a teddy bear sitting there with a card that has my name on it. I’m a bit nervous at this point but don’t say anything because I’m waiting for her to leave before I do. As soon as she’s out of earshot, I shout. “Hey, Cindy. When did this arrive?”
“A few minutes after you went off with Amy.”
“How was it delivered?” My brows furrow.
“A guy walked it in and said it was for you. I told him to leave it on your desk. He dropped it and left.”
I pull the card from the envelope and begin to read it.
Kara,
I’m sorry I can no longer help your father nail Mr. Higgins. I will end up dead if I help him and I need to be around to fight for you. I want you back in my life and won’t just walk away because you’re now dating Slade, even if that means removing him from the picture. I love you and I get that I wasn’t good at expressing it, but I want to try harder. I have to disappear for a little while but I’ll be back for you. Be careful because Higgins is coming for Miranda and I don’t want you mixed up in that.
Love you now and forever,
Noah
I begin to shake as I text Cole, telling him to get back to my desk. He’s there in a matter of seconds, and when he sees something was delivered, he calls my father immediately. As soon as he hangs up with him, I go to Colton’s office and let him know that I’m done for the day. I’m too shaken up at this point to work with another two clients. He tells me not to worry about it because Kenny is on his way in to walk the floor. He’s going to have him take my clients instead. When I get back, Cole is on the phone with Stone, filling him in on the situation and the threat that was made against Miranda.
My father gets to the club and I run to him. He wraps me in a hug and tells me to try and relax a bit. He takes the card from Cole and reads it. “Damn it, Noah,” my father growls. “This kid is going to get himself killed and we still can’t get to Higgins because this is nothing more than hearsay.” He turns to Cole. “Get her home. I’ll take care of this.”
Cole escorts me to my car, but before he has me get in, he sweeps it for anything suspicious looking. When he sees nothing, he opens the door for me and has me climb in. “I’ll be following right behind you. Slade is on his way home too and he’ll meet you there.” I nod my head and watch as he climbs into his car. Once he has his started, I pull out of my spot and head straight home.
We pull up to find Slade’s car in the driveway. I run straight into the house. “Slade,” I call out. “How is Miranda?”
“She’s fine. Zane set up security for her and Cole will be staying with you.” He hugs me. “Are you all right?”
“I’m tired. This is so draining, but I’m all right.”
“We have nothing going on tonight. We’ll make it a relaxing night at home. You can soak in the tub and then we’ll watch a movie in bed so you can fall asleep when you’re ready.”
I nod. “Will you stay with me in bed? I don’t want to be alone.”
“There’s nowhere else I want to be.”
Chapter 14
Slade
I pull up outside of Vixen and park on the same side of the street I always do. I approach the club with caution. These guys have seen me before, and if Noah is here and recognizes me, I may be screwed. “Hey, I have a VIP room tonight.” I give the guy the name of Scott and he lets me in. I never use my real name here. I’m worried they’ll know it from Logan’s place, and I’ll be busted. The hostess comes to the door and escorts me back to one of the small rooms. I don’t have my boys with me tonight because this was something I wanted to do on my own. I didn’t want to chance them getting hurt if we were caught. I have a plan, and if it all works out right, I’ll be in and out of here in no time.
When we get into the room, the woman hands me the menu and asks me what I want. I tell her I want a scotch on the rocks and that I want the girl I had last time. “The curvy one with the long, light brown hair. I think her name is Sapphire.” She smiles and nods, knowing who I’m talking about. She exits the room and music starts to play as I take a seat on the couch. A girl comes out, but it’s not the girl I requested.
“Sapphire is on stage, but she’ll be in shortly.” The girl continues to work the pole as I sit and watch. I narrow my eyes at her, trying to remember any details in case I need to recognize her later.
The waitress walks in with my drink. I hand her a five for a tip.
She licks her lips. “I’ll come check on you in a bit.” She strolls out of the room. I take a very small sip of my drink. I’m not a scotch drinker, but I wanted to order something in a glass, not a bottle, and since it’s not beer, I won’t drink too much of it.
When her routine is done, she struts offstage toward the couch I’m sitting on. I place my glass on the table and she straddles my lap. My cock doesn’t even budge. Don’t get me wrong, this girl is pretty, but my cock wants no part of it, knowing it’s not my girl. “Can I be of service to you?”
I shake my head. “No. I’m good, thanks.” I lift her off of my lap and slip a twenty into the string of her bottom and she walks off in a huff. I guess I pissed her off.
I’m checking my phone messages when I hear some heels walking onto the stage. This time it’s my girl, Sapphire. I smile and watch as she begins her routine. She’s improved since the last time I was here. She’s gained some confidence and she’s really working the pole. I cross my legs at my ankle as I continue to watch. I glance around the room to see if I can notice anything different from the last time I was here, but nothing stands out to me. I take another small sip of my scotch. This shit tastes fucking horrible and burns my throat as it goes down. I don’t know how the fuck anyone drinks this shit.
She finishes her routine a few minutes later and struts offstage just like the last girl did. She too walks over to straddle my lap, but unlike the last girl, she’s nervous. I can feel her body trembling as she sits on me. “Can I be of further service to you?” She smiles at me.
“Why are you shaking?”
“I’m not.” She tries to lie but fails miserably, because it only makes her body tremble more.
“Do you remember me?”
She nods her head. “I’m good at remembering faces.”
“Good, so you know I won’t hurt you, right?”
