Darlene decided not to shower that morning, make a quick breakfast of eggs, toast, and butter, and go out the door so she could start looking for a job. They’d done the paperwork on the apartment before Pete had left. It was nice of him to let her rent the place out without her having a record of employment in Los Angeles. Then again, she was sleeping with him.
Before she had a chance to even walk out the door, Pete rushed inside using his own key. Was that crossing the line? She’d already signed the lease for the apartment.
“What’s going on?”
“There’s something I have to talk to you about, Darlene,” he stuttered. “You asked what I do. I had to tell you something else. I’m crooked, Darlene. It’s not just movies. I’m in the mafia. I’m a mob guy. And we need to get out of here right now, Darlene. There is a dead guy in this apartment. In the parlor. My boss made some guys put him there, Darlene. He wanted me to rent this place out and pin the blame on the renter, but I can’t do that to you. I like you, Darlene. Maybe even more than like you.”
“What?? Is this some kind of joke?”
“No, it’s not a joke. The reason I left this last night is because I had to get some money. I don’t want to explain how I got it, but it ain’t exactly legal. I gotta make a decision, Darlene. Are you the type of woman that would run with me?”
Darlene knew that something like this was bound to happen. She couldn’t escape her past. It was impossible. She could almost imagine her father saying how he approved of Pete. He’d like a guy like him.
“How much money?” Darlene asked. She wanted to take her mind off of the insane news that there was dead guy in the apartment.
“It’s in a couple sacks.”
Darlene gasped. “What do we do?”
“We gotta get on a boat and go beyond the coast. It’s the only place my boss won’t look.”
Darlene didn’t know what to do. Everything was happening so fast, and she couldn’t make sense of it.
*****
On the way to the coast, Pete got a call from his boss. At first Pete didn’t want to answer it, but Darlene knew what kind of trouble he could be in, and she forced him to.
While Pete had his boss on the line, Darlene couldn’t help but overhear. It sounded like the guy was congratulating Pete for some reason. It looked like Pete was sweating behind the wheel.
When they pulled up to the marina, Pete motioned for her to get out of the car. He led her to his boat, a large luxury yacht. She waited for him there while he walked up and down the dock.
The sun started to set, turning the sky a shade of turquoise mixed with peach. It seemed so beautiful in this dangerous, tense time.
When Pete returned, he had a confused smile on his face.
“He says he wants me to be the new boss. He says he’s moving to San Francisco, and that the stunt I pulled, in conjunction with what we did with Tony made him see me as someone who can handle things.
Darlene remained silent. She didn’t know how to respond to Pete’s “good news”. He seemed pretty proud about the whole thing, and once they were far off shore he popped a bottle of champagne.
Enough was enough. Darlene wanted out, even if Pete worked for the type of guys that might kill her for leaving. She went for the money, with the plan to throw it into the sea. She didn’t care anymore. She’d had enough of the mafia lifestyle. She couldn’t escape it in Detroit, and she couldn’t escape it across the country. Now here she was in a boat off the coast of the Pacific with one of the biggest upcoming crime bosses in Los Angeles.
“Wait, Darlene!” said Pete, desperately. “I didn’t want it to be this way. I didn’t expect Vic to promote me. I didn’t know he was moving to San Francisco.”
“You don’t have to be a crime boss if you don’t want to be, Pete!” Darlene cried, hovering over the money.
“Don’t throw that money in the ocean, Darlene,” Pete said. “You know that we can use that money. I know I don’t have to be a crime boss but right now I don’t know any other way. Maybe we can use that money to start fresh somewhere else. I don’t know if it’s possible, but for you I’m willing to try to leave this life behind.”
Darlene knew just as well as he did that it was damn near impossible to get out of the mafia. With as much experience that Pete had working for Vic, Pete would be as good as dead if he tried to pack up and leave town.
Darlene moved the sack of money from over the ledge and dropped it onto the floor of the boat. She couldn’t help but start to sob. With the stacks of cash spilled out on the boat floor, it was like she was making a definite decision in her life.
Pete knew to walk over to Darlene, put his arms around her, and kiss her cheek. They had only been intimate once, but Pete had never been so in love with a woman before. Darlene was smart, creative, business savvy, and even liked monster movies. She was the type of woman who could look sexy at dinner, and play naughty in the bedroom. She was probably a great cook. She had her own dreams, passions and ambitions. Never in Pete’s life had he wanted to help another person achieve their own dreams.
It can only be one thing, he thought. I love her.
“What do you want me to do?” Pete asked her. The wind whistled as the breeze from the ocean brushed Darlene’s hair into Pete’s face. It smelled like her lilac shampoo.
“I don’t know, Pete,” she said, burying her head into his shoulders. Her body shivered from the cool sea air, despite Pete’s closeness. Pete took his Armani jacket off to drape it around her bare shoulders.
“I told you that my father is involved with the Detroit mob,” she said, finally warming up with the silky material against her skin. “When I moved here I decided to put the mob behind me. But now I’m starting to think that it’s forever going to be a part of me. I thought it was something I had to escape. But you’re starting to make me think it’s something I should embrace.”
“I never knew that you felt that way, Darlene,” Pete stammered. “The last thing I ever imagined was dragging you into this life.”
“No, Pete, you don’t understand,” she whispered. “You’re not dragging me into anything. I knew what you did. Sure, you may have hidden the truth at first, but you did come clean. I respect that about you. You didn’t want to lie to me once you knew that you loved me.”
Pete couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “So you’re saying that you want to live like this?” he asked. Pulling his head away from her, he stared into her moonlit eyes. The gleam in her eyes was like the stars themselves reflecting back at him. “I’ll give you any kind of life you could imagine, Darlene. We can L.A, we can leave the country.”
Darlene laughed into Pete’s chest. The comfort of his warmth returned to her. Now the boat no longer seemed like something on which she was jettisoned. Darlene imagined the boat as their own private island. The lights of the city were so far off that she could barely make them out unless she squinted her eyes.
“That’s some proposition,” Darlene smiled.
“Darlene, if you want me to, I can run things here for Vic. It’s going to be a big responsibility. I have big shoes to fill. And I think what I’m telling you is that if I’m going to be a strong man, I’m going to need a strong woman around in my life. A woman like you.”
Darlene blushed, but was also dumbfounded. She wondered, is this some kind of marriage proposal? Until this point, Darlene never considered the idea that Pete wanted something long-term with her. There was no denying the attraction they shared, but in Darlene’s heart she feared to get attached to him.
“I can be the woman you need,” she said.
“I know you can.”
“I can be more than that, too.”
“I know you can.” His lips lingered inches away from hers. “But I’m not just proposing that you and I become an item.”
Pete lowered himself down to the ground, and balanced himself on one knee. He looked up at her, and smiled with his eyes wide. Darlene was now entranced in the way the moon shone in his eyes.
“I know we rushed into things, Darlene,” Pete laughed. “I know some people would call us fools for that. But if we’re going to live this life together, I promise you that I will take care of you and love you until I die. With you by my side I feel like I can run the world. I feel like I can be the best man I can be. I want to cherish you, Darlene. I want to spend every dollar and then some on you. Hell, I’ll move to Detroit and rob every bank in the Great Lakes area with your father, if that’s what you wanted.”
Darlene’s face grew hot, even in the cool, salty air. All of a sudden she felt the moisture rising behind her eyes, and the tears welled up like raindrops falling down her cheek.
“Darlene, I know that we just met,” Pete went on, “But I would love nothing more than to take your hand in marriage. Will you marry me, Darlene?”
Pete’s words echoed in the silence of the night, and forever after in Darlene’s ears. There had been men in her life who had confessed her love to her before, but none of them like this. None them ever officially got down on one knee and proposed to her. Darlene felt like she was stuck in that continuous dream. She was nearly convinced that she was still in Detroit, fast asleep or potentially in a coma, and that this gorgeous man kneeling below, and Los Angeles, and the boat, the money, and the dead guy in her apartment—all of it was a dream. How could it be real?
But it is real, she thought. This wasn’t exactly the life she imagined, but somehow it seemed like something better. It was the perfect synthesis of her old life and her new life. She realized that Pete was still kneeling, and that all of her thinking had left him hanging.
“Yes, Pete. I’ll marry you. I’ll be the woman in your life. And I want you to be the man in my life.”
Pete stood up and looked toward his new fiancé’s beautiful, moonlit face. It took no time for their lips to find each other’s, and as Darlene opened her mouth to take in Pete’s tongue, the salt of her tears was shared between both of them. In the friction of their kiss, Darlene was blindsided by a surge of lust that came over her. Pete was now going to be her man for life. They were going to get married. The fact that he wanted her in such a way made Darlene pulsate with joy.
“I need you right now, Pete,” Darlene said. She had only been intimate with him the one time, and if that and a few days of romantic drama was enough for Pete to fall for her, then she’d have to consummate it right away. If she was going to marry this man, she needed to please him. She needed to feel him inside of her. She needed to taste him this time.
Since he had just knelt down on the one knee for her, she felt like it was her turn. With Pete standing up, it was Darlene’s turn to drop to her knees. She felt the cool wood of the boat under her knees. A wad of cash rested uncomfortably under her leg until she kicked it aside. It went overboard, and Darlene nearly choked.
“Don’t worry, baby,” Pete said. He put his hand on the back of her head. “I’m not worried about it. I’m more interested in what you’re about to do to me.”
Darlene smiled. That comment made her feel like more than the amount of money she just put into the ocean. The thought of the green paper becoming useless fled from her mind—her attention was back to Pete’s body. Reaching her hands forward she smoothed her hands along the backside of his Armani pants. Staring at where his dick rested behind the pants and underwear, Darlene sat there on her knees licking her lips. She wanted Pete to look at her. She wanted Pete to see how much she craved him in her mouth.
“I love you, Darlene,” Pete moaned.
“I love you too, baby,” Darlene said. She looked into his eyes and imagined the life of danger they would indulge in, licked her lips, and then gave him her mouth.
THE END
Bonus Story 21 of 40
Tumbleweed and Daggers
The beginning of summer on the edge of the desert was always challenging, Terry thought to herself looking at the line of people at the register. Fortunately her new hire, a girl named Charlene, was handling it like a pro. A small convoy of people was heading out into the desert to take pictures and drink water. As far as Terry could tell anyhow. She liked the desert, she lived in it, but traveling a long way to just look at it did not make any sense to her.
Not that she would complain. Tourists were her bread and butter and the more the merrier, she thought. Especially since she was the owner of Tumbleweed Grocery and Pies and the tourist business allowed her to hire someone to work the till and cook. With Charlene working the register and her sister Cheryl baking the pies, Terry could finally be a real owner and just watch things and oversee the operation. Most of the time.
She heard the familiar rumble of Harley Davidsons, and two motorcycles could be seen pulling off the lonely highway that passed the front of her place. She recognized the bikes and smiled slightly. She knew these two bikers, and despite their reputation and “occupations”, they were always good to her and her place. Not to mention good looking. Terry took a sip of her coffee and thought about a cigarette, watching the line of customers diminish down to just a few. Yep, she thought, she could slip out for a minute. She got up and went through the employee door.
“Give us all your money!” came a voice from the other side of the door she had just gone through.
“Holy shit dude, calm down…I’ll get you what you want,” Charlene said.
Terry went back and peeked through the little window and saw the last two people who had been in line facing the register, one of them was holding a gun. She also saw two people getting close to the front door from outside and smiled slightly. A noise behind her made her turn and it was Cheryl. Terry put a finger to her lips.
“Call the cops, we are being robbed,” she whispered softly before turning back to watch the drama unfolding in her restaurant. She prepared herself to go through the door in Charlene’s defense if she had too. Charlene was pressing the buttons on the register to get it to open without a purchase. Terry could see she was deliberately messing it up. She was a fearless woman, not to mention a beauty, so batting her eyes at the two was softening them up to her stalling.
“Come on, idiot. Give us the cash,” the bigger of the two growled.
“I am trying damn it! I’m nervous. Just a second and I’ll get it for you,” Charlene said as the two bikers came through the door behind the thieves. They immediately saw what was going on and the taller of the two laughed. The thieves spun around. The one with the gun backed away to stay out of their reach. Just a little further, Terry thought, both scared and excited by the dangerous activity. A little further and I’ve got you.
“You guys wanna get the hell out of here,” the tall biker told them.
“Yeah, this is one of our favorite stores. Leave now and we won’t leave you for the ambulances,” the shorter one said. Terry watched Charlene crouch down behind the counter so when the bigger thug looked to the counter, he couldn’t see her. It looked like she had disappeared.
“Well, you lost the bird in the hand boys. So why don’t you just leave now. Like my brother said, you don’t want to be left for the body bus,” the tall biker said.
The two thieves muttered curses to themselves that got worse as the sound of sirens could be heard. That was fast, Terry thought. Then the two wanna be robbers backed up further, putting them right in front of the swinging door she was watching them from. Perfect, she decided, making eye contact with the tall biker and he gave a slight nod. She stood back a step and then threw herself against the door.
It swung open like a shot and caught the big thug between the shoulder blades with the edge. This knocked him into his partner while he also dropped the gun. The two bikers stepped up and cold cocked them. One punch each had them groaning on the floor. Just like that, Terry thought, beginning to shake a little as it was over and she could recognize how dangerous it had been. She nodded to the two bikers, who stood over the crooks waiting for the cops. Then she went over to her friend and employee.
“You okay girl?” she asked Charlene. She looked up at Terry
from where she crouched.
“It’s over?” she asked.
“Looks like it, the cops are here too,” she informed her. Charlene stood up and looked around.
“I guess I am alright then,” she answered as her sister Cheryl came out of the back. The cops ran in the front door with their guns drawn. Terry reflected that it was a weird way to start a day.
********
Terry waved to the cops as they pulled away with the wanna be robbers. She immediately pulled out her cigarette case from inside of her leather vest and lit one. She exhaled and felt herself relax. She was always brave until after anything dangerous happened. Then she had to fight to keep from falling apart. Now that the cops and bad guys were gone she could relax. She heard the squeak of the door and she was joined by Ajax Lowell, the bigger of the two bikers and the president of the motorcycle club called The Daggers. He was a muscular guy at six foot two with long brown hair and a mustache. His sleeveless denim jacket had patches from all over the west coast as well as a big one on the back of two crossed daggers pointing up, dripping blood.
“Those things will kill ya, you know?” he told her as he lit a thin cigar.
“If you say so Ajax. I am glad you and Red showed up when you did. I would have had to kick some ass,” she told him taking another drag off her smoke. He laughed.
“I would have thought you would let that girl Charlene do it. That is a tough chick,” he said with another chuckle.
“Keep that in mind if you or your boys ever start anything around here,” she told him with a grin. He returned it and she caught him eyeing her figure before he looked back out at the empty road. She was used to it. She got a lot of looks.
Alien Mate Page 75
