by Nikki Chase
“Likewise,” I say as I stand up and shake his hand with relief.
I can’t be happier with the news Caine has just shared with me and I’m sure he’s a good guy, but I’m also glad we’re done talking. I can’t deal with this much tension for too long. Luckily, it seems my brush with the criminal world is over.
Chapter 28
Jessica
“You’re gonna be the death of me, woman,” Jacob says as we both stand in the bathtub, the water from the shower hitting our head and shoulders before trailing down our entangled bodies.
When I got home, Jacob was working on his laptop in the living room. I didn’t expect him there, but he’s been here so much lately it only makes sense that he’d start moving his stuff over here and doing his work here.
I told him I met Caine Foster. I said it had gone well and everything’s fine now. Then I told him I needed to take a shower and I’d talk to him after. He followed me into the bathroom, stripped, and jumped into the shower with me.
“What are you talking about? I just solved everything on my own.” I laugh softly.
“Do you know how much I worry about you? You can’t just go off and do dangerous shit like that.” Jacob grabs my face with both hands and stare at me seriously, trying to hammer his point into my head.
But the water dripping down his face keeps getting in the way, making him blink weirdly and sputter out water from his mouth. The final effect feels like I’m watching a big grizzly bear doing something funny and adorable, knowing he can crush me with one hand if he wants to. Luckily, this grizzly bear seems pretty smitten with me.
“The guy was already there at the school. He just wanted to talk, and Tony was there the whole time. Don’t worry about me. I can take care of myself.” I smile at Jacob.
“It’s just… The idea of this stranger who’s potentially dangerous being alone with you while I’m not there… I can’t be okay with that. It makes me mad that I couldn’t be there. I was just reading the fucking financial section of the newspaper at home when it happened.”
“It wasn’t the life-or-death situation you imagine it to be. We were just talking in a classroom, at school, where there were a bunch of other people. I knew it was safe,” I say.
“I told you not to meet dangerous strange men on your own.”
“You did. And I’m sorry, but it was just something I had to do.” I put one hand on Jacob’s forehead to shield his eyes from the water pelting his face. I stand on my tippy toes, give him a big smile, and plant a light kiss on his lips. His expression softens, his muscles relax.
I usually hate it when people tell me what I can and cannot do, but with Jacob I know he’s only looking out for my best interests. I can’t get angry with him for worrying about me, but he needs to understand I’m still the one in charge of making my own decisions.
“So he told you nobody’s coming after you anymore?”
“Yeah. It’s good news, right? We should be celebrating.”
“It is good news,” Jacob says.
Sensing some hesitation in his voice, I say, “You don’t seem too happy about it.”
“I just don’t know if I can trust this guy. So he just walked in and said everything is solved?”
“Yeah. He said he’s related to Nancy and wanted to ‘get her affairs in order,’” I say as I make air quotes between us and laugh. “That’s how he talked the entire time, by the way.”
“There’s no catch?”
“None.” I shake my head. “Believe me, there’s nothing Caine Foster could possibly want from me. He already has everything.”
“He doesn’t have you,” Jacob says in a quiet voice. Is he jealous? That is adorable.
“Yeah, he doesn’t. Because you do.” I look into his eyes and hope my cheesy line works.
I like talking to Jacob, but right now I’m not in the mood for conversation. Not when he’s standing in front of me buck naked, with his chiseled abs, broad shoulders, and muscled arms. With those eyes looking at me like that, like he wants to shield me from all the bad things in the world.
“Say that again. Tell me I have you. Tell me you belong to me.” Jacob pins me against the wet, tiled wall. He leans in and puts his head on my shoulder.
“I belong to you, Jacob.” I close my eyes and feel the water running down my body, hot like Jacob’s breath on my neck.
“Fuck. I can’t keep my hands off you.” Jacob bites my neck, making me cry out in a mixture of pain and pleasure. His hands roam all over my skin, which is slippery with water and soap. He slaps my ass and grab a cheek. His stubble grazes my neck as he places his lips right by my ear. He whispers, “Lucky for me, you’re all mine.”
“All yours.” I wrap my arms around Jacob’s hard body, one hand grabbing onto his back while the other strokes his head, accepting his desire and whatever that brings, whether it’s pain or pleasure or both.
Jacob nibbles down my throat until he ends up between my breasts. He pulls me close with his hand on my back, while I offer myself to his overpowering assault. My breathless moans echo dully in the bathroom as he kisses and licks and bites my nipples.
“Turn around, baby.” Jacob could’ve flipped me with his strength and he knows I wouldn’t have resisted, but I can tell he likes to watch me obey him.
There’s always one moment in every single one of our sexual encounters when I give up my thoughts, my protests, my own desires, and trade them all for single-minded pursuit of pleasure—his pleasure.
It’s like a switch flicks and I’m no longer the stubborn, strong-willed, argumentative person I usually am. Instead, I’m a sensual, submissive slut who’d do anything for his cock.
I’ve never experienced something like this before, and yet it comes so naturally to me. I’ve never allowed other men to order me around. But with Jacob… With Jacob, all I want to do is please him. His pleasure is more important than mine. It’s all that matters.
If he’s satisfied with what my body can offer him, that brings me more pleasure than just any old orgasm can bring. And if he brings me to orgasm, that’s ecstasy.
So I face the wall and feel Jacob’s body behind me, his cock growing, pressing against my ass. I realize I’m the one that’s making him hard. I’m the reason he’s got a raging boner. I don’t care if he’s the one issuing the orders. Like me, he’s just a slave to this vortex of desire swirling around us.
Jacob’s hands explore my tits, my abdomen, my hips, my ass. He grabs my hair and pushes me forward with his wet, warm body, squishing me against the tiled wall.
“If you’re mine, that means I can do anything to you, doesn’t it?” Jacob groans into my ear as his hard cock slides between my legs, teasing my slick lower lips.
“Yeah.” I stick my ass out, needing more of him. My clit pulses, aching for his attention.
“You’re already so wet for me. And I haven’t even begun.” He chuckles as his hand snakes around me and settles over my pussy. He pushes his cock inside me, his girth stretching me and filling me up.
Jacob fucks me leisurely at first, knowing I’m at his mercy. He slides all the way out, then plunges back in until his balls slap against me, wet skin on wet skin. His hand lazily plays with my pussy lips, only occasionally brushing against my clit. It makes me gasp every time. I can almost hear him smile when I do.
“I’m going to fuck you until I’m all your pussy remembers. I’ll make every part of you understand that you’re mine now. You’ll beg for me, you’ll come for me, your body will give pleasure only to me,” Jacob says.
He pulls out just to dip two of his fingers inside me. He sticks those fingers into my mouth as his cock pushes back inside me, impaling me against the wall. He picks up his pace, pushing me forward every time he thrusts inside.
I surrender to the overwhelming sensations. I close my eyes and throw my head back against Jacob’s shoulder. I don’t do anymore; I just feel. Feel the warm, yielding water on my hair and the hard wall against my thighs, my tits, my cheek. Fe
el Jacob’s insistent fingers in my mouth, on my clit. And most of all, feel Jacob’s hot, hard cock inside me.
“Come for me, baby. Come all over my cock,” Jacob growls. “Cream all over me and show me how much you love being my own personal slut.”
I scream as it all becomes too much. I shatter at his words. I don’t even know anymore if I’m only coming because that’s what he wants. It’s all blurring together, my desires and his, all becoming one as hot water washes over us.
Jacob grunts, pulls on my hair, slams into me over and over again until he comes inside me, biting me on the shoulder. He grinds into me, pushing me right up against the wet tiles.
When Jacob’s done shooting the last drop of cum inside me, he kisses my neck and turns me around. Without saying anything, he washes my body, lathers me up, and rinses me clean. We kiss, we touch, both of us quietly complicit in this filthy cleansing ritual.
“Where’s Max, by the way?” I shout at Jacob over the sound of the hair dryer.
“I don’t know,” Jacob says. “Now that you mention it, I haven’t seen him.”
It’s unfair how guys don’t have to spend any time on grooming. I’ve combed my hair and put my clothes on, but I still have to dry my hair and apply my face cream. Meanwhile, Jacob stepped out of the shower the same time I did, threw on some clothes, and now he’s on the couch watching some animal documentary.
“I haven’t seen him either since I got home. He usually greets me at the door.” I frown.
Could Max be sick? Maybe his energy level is low. He is an old dog. I shut the hair dryer off and comb through my hair one last time with my fingers.
“Max!” I call out randomly as I check every room in the house. This is strange. He’s not even barking back. This house isn’t big enough for him to be anywhere indoors and not hear me. I turn up my volume regardless. “Max!”
I open the door to the backyard, and scream when I finally see a hunk of fur on the grass. It’s still moving, its rib cage going up and down with every labored breath.
It can’t be anything other than Max, can it? And yet...it can’t be Max. It just can’t.
I run toward the furry body and kneel beside it.
It is Max.
Tears stream out of my eyes. What happened to him?
Chapter 29
Jacob
When I get to the backyard, Jessica's sobbing, kneeling on the grass. Her bare, freshly showered knees and feet sink into the mud, leaving brown stains on her pale skin.
In front of her, partially blocked by her back, is Max. His coat is as shiny as always, but he's just lying there, struggling to breathe.
“What happened?” I crouch beside Jessica and place a reassuring hand on her shoulder. I notice a small puddle of sick near poor Max’s little furry head, and some blood trickling out of his nose.
Damn it. The poor little fucker probably went out through the dog flap when I was still reading the financial section. When the fuck did I become the kind of person who just lays down and lets shit happen right under my nose?
“I don't know. I came out here and he was just… He was already like this when I found him.” Jessica answers without turning to look at me, her eyes locked firmly on Max.
I get up and start to check the ground. Damn it, it's starting to get dark. I grab my phone, turn on the flashlight, and scan the grass. There may not be anything left, but I need to try, for Jessica’s sake. She needs to know what really happened here.
“I’ll call the vet.” Jessica ‘s fingers start tapping on her phone, the cool blue light from the screen making her look otherworldly in the darkness. “Can you drive me?”
“No.”
“What? Hold on.” Jessica puts the phone to her ear.
I have to hand it to the vet. It doesn't take long at all for Jessica to get an emergency address for immediate treatment, but I don't think any vet is going to be able to help Max now.
Jessica carefully picks Max up in her arms, his little body limp like a lifeless doll. She says, “Get the car keys on the dining table, Jacob. Let's go.”
“No, it's too late for the little guy. We need to find whoever did this.”
“What are you talking about? You're not coming with me to the vet?”
“There are more important things to do right now.”
“Like staring at the grass, when we could be saving Max’s life?” Jessica raises her voice.
“It's rat poison.”
“What?”
“It's poison. I can’t say what kind for sure, but rat poison is the most widely available kind. Someone poisoned Max, and I'm trying to find some clues.” I check the area near the side gate leading to the backyard.
Whoever did this probably threw some kind of food laced with rat poison over the fence, so there should at least be traces of it left.
“I don't care what it is. We need to get Max to a clinic,” she says.
“We need to find the asshole who did this.” I kneel down to check out a suspicious piece of something brown and green. I didn't see it before because the colors hide it well among the grass and soil.
“Who? How long is it going to take you to find him? It could be anyone. Remember what the cops said about the letter in my mailbox. It could be anyone, for any reason.”
“I’ll start with Steve and Caine.”
“It's not them. Jacob, I’m telling you. You’d just be wasting your time if you approached them. Caine, especially. He’s a dangerous man,” Jessica says.
“Maybe I’m a dangerous man, too.” I know Jessica's getting aggravated, but I’m getting really tired of her throwing caution to the wind and having secret meetings with potentially dangerous men. Somebody has to be the responsible adult here, and it's obviously not going to be her.
“How are you even so sure that Max isn't just sick? He’s an old dog,” Jessica says.
“Call it a hunch,” I say as my fingers move the taller blades of grass out of the way.
“So I’m standing here waiting for you while Max is slowly dying, and it's all because you have a hunch?”
“There's something here.” I flash the light from my phone onto the suspicious thing on the ground. “Did you give Max some food here recently?”
“No. Jacob, listen. I’m done talking. Max needs to make it to the vet like right now. Do whatever you want. I'm going to the vet,” Jessica says.
I raise my head and open my mouth to call her, but she's gone. She must've slipped away when I was looking at this chunk of bright green minced meat on the ground.
It's some sort of poison alright, but I can't be sure what kind, or how much Max has ingested.
I hope the fact that his body was all the way over there means that he only ate a little bit before walking away. I do feel for the little guy, and I hope he makes it.
It's just more important to find the person responsible for this and keep Jessica safe. At least she's out of the house, which is where she's safest, considering whoever did this seems to want to chase her out, make her run away, keep her on her toes.
Jessica's right; if someone wanted to kidnap her or kill her, they would've already done that.
But what if that someone wants to stretch out the chase, maximize Jessica's pain, extend her punishment?
Then the easiest way to accomplish that is to hit her just when she lets her guard down. When she starts settling down, make her run away to another town. When she starts to settle down again in the new town, drive her away again. On and on until the guy’s bored of the cruel game.
This means there’s a good reason why the guy hasn’t openly attacked her yet, despite having had many opportunities to do so. This means neither Steve nor Caine can be ruled out.
Chapter 30
Jessica
“Hang in there, Max.” I peer over the top of Max’s car seat when we stop at a red light.
His little body rapidly expands and contracts as his lungs work overtime. His whines tell me he’s scared and confused. He has no ide
a what’s going on, and it breaks my heart to watch him fight for his life.
I touch his head gently, afraid to hurt him. “Everything’s going to be okay, Max.”
I don’t believe my own words. I’ve seen how his muscles jerk uncontrollably. He’s having seizures.
As soon as the lights turn green, I step on it. The GPS tells me to take a right turn. The robotic voice is calm, cool, collected, unrushed—it annoys me.
We need to get to the clinic right now. I’m worried Max wouldn’t even make it onto the vet’s examination table.
Maybe Jacob’s right. Maybe it’s a lost cause and there’s no hope for Max at all. Maybe there’s zero chance that Max is going to live to see the sun rise.
But I have to give it my best shot. I won’t be able to live with myself if I didn’t. I’ll be damned if Max died because I choose to search for someone who may not even exist, instead of getting him to the vet.
Why is Jacob so sure this was done by someone who wants to hurt me anyway?
Maybe Max is sick because he’s old. He could’ve swallowed something poisonous just because he’s an idiot who’d eat anything. Maybe someone unintentionally fed Max something bad, and had no idea it was going to turn out this way. A neighborhood kid could’ve given him chocolate, for example.
Why would Jacob jump to the conclusion that it was a calculated, malicious move against me?
And why would he suspect Steve and Caine? I already told him they’re safe. Neither one of them would gain anything from me moving out of Ashbourne. Steve would just lose one potential downline for his network, and Caine never wanted anything from me in the first place.
They both have cleared my safety checks, but apparently that means nothing to Jacob. Only his judgment matters because I obviously know nothing.
To that, I say fuck off. I’ve worked in a seedy industry full of men who wanted to take advantage of me, and I’ve survived.
