Game On (The Game Series)

by Carella, A. J.

  Game On

  A.J. Carella

  PUBLISHED BY:

  A.J. Carella

  Copyright © 2013

  Chapter 1

  As she stood at the window of their apartment looking out on the street below and the people passing by, Tara couldn’t help but think about how much her life had changed in the past six months.

  After leaving London and Sergei behind, they’d managed to raise enough money in Switzerland from the sale of her jewelry to rent the small apartment where she now stood, and still be comfortable. The apartment, while not in one of the more expensive areas of L.A., was still in a good one. The street was nice, with trees lining the pavement on each side. The apartment itself was one of eight in a four-story block, each floor having two. It was a one bedroom, two bath unit with a large open plan living room and kitchen. The high ceilings and big windows let in plenty of light. They had rented it furnished and the furnishings, though not what she would have chosen, were nice enough in creams and browns. The kitchen was quite small but it turned out that neither of them were very good cooks, so take-out figured a lot on their menu.

  At first it had been fine. She’d been happy to feel safe and protected inside the apartment and had enjoyed getting to know Kyle better. They had barely known each other a few weeks before ending up here and in that time they had had no time to truly explore and get to know each other. So, over the past six months they had spent hours talking, often sitting up all night and revelling in each other’s company, falling more deeply in love with each passing day. Once they’d been here a couple of months, and they’d felt a bit bolder, he had taken her out and given her the grand tour of L.A. Holding hands and giggling like teenagers, he’d shown her all the tourist sights before introducing her to some interesting places that didn’t appear on any tourist’s map.

  It had been six months now, though, and Tara was starting to go a bit stir crazy. Much as she loved Kyle and his company, she was bored. She couldn’t work, was a UK citizen and she had no skills to speak of. It wasn’t that she needed to work. Money was not an issue at the moment as they had plenty to live on, but she felt isolated. A job would allow her to meet new people, get out of the apartment more.

  It was different for Kyle. He had insisted that he had to work, for his pride’s sake, and he had soon got a job as security in a local supermarket. Tara was proud of him. It was only a temporary job but she knew it meant a lot to him to not be living entirely off her.

  Though she barely left the apartment alone, both of them still fearing that Sergei’s men were out there somewhere waiting to snatch her back, and so she spent most of her days cooped up indoors. She sometimes went shopping or headed down to the beach, but there was only so much sightseeing and shopping a girl could do. Now that all the sightseeing was done and the excitement of setting up their new home had passed, she had time on her hands. Time to dwell on thoughts of her daughter, not that she’d ever really stopped thinking about her. How could she? Her daughter was out there, somewhere. Alive.

  Her immediate reaction after receiving Sergei’s message had been, unsurprisingly, to rush back to London, to take her daughter in her arms and never let her go. She’d been hysterical and would have acted without thinking if Kyle had not been there. He had kept a much more level head. She’d known, of course, that that was exactly what Sergei had wanted, and expected, her to do when he’d sent the message and she didn’t care.

  Kyle knew, though, that if she went back, that would be the end. She would never again be free. So she’d allowed him to bring her here and she had, almost mechanically at first, settled down to her new life. Gradually, things had gotten easier and she now didn’t think about her daughter from the moment she woke to the moment she went to sleep. But she couldn’t forget and the longing never left her. It was one thing to move on thinking her child was dead, but to know that she was alive made it impossible. What was she like? What was her name, even? Did she know about her? These were questions she allowed herself to ponder whenever she thought of her.

  The front door slammed, snapping her out of her reverie, and she turned away from the window as Kyle entered the apartment. She still got that rush of feeling when she saw him, that shiver of anticipation that ran down her spine and made the breath catch in her throat.

  He’d just finished work and was still wearing the uniform of the security firm he was working for. Dark blue trousers molded themselves to his strong thighs and the white shirt was stretched taut across his chest. Tara felt that familiar warmth spread between her legs as she looked at him and marvelled at the fact that this man had such a strong impact on her.

  Seeing her, the furrow that had been between his eyes as he walked through the door vanished, and a wide smile spread across his face. He opened his arms to her and she happily went to him and he held her close. Breathing in his scent and feeling his strong arms around her, Tara smiled. This was where she was meant to be.

  She would tell him about the message later.

  Chapter 2

  Kyle felt tired as he let himself in to the apartment. It had been another long nightshift working as security at the local mall. He didn’t like his job and the hours were antisocial but it served a purpose. He couldn’t go back to the LAPD and private security hadn’t worked out so well so, after talking it through with Tara they had decided that he should become a private investigator. He had the experience and the knowledge so dealing with horny husbands wouldn’t be too difficult. It wouldn’t happen overnight, though. There were rules and procedures to follow and he would need to obtain a license. All that would take time.

  That had left him with a dilemma as to what to do until his license came through, so he had taken the security job as a way of earning some money while he waited. Tara had been adamant that he didn’t need to work right away, that they had enough from the sale of her jewelry to support them for now but that was something he wouldn’t even consider. There was no way he was going to live off Tara. The money he made was not much, little more than minimum wage, but it allowed him to feel as if he was contributing. That was very important to him. He had his pride, after all.

  One of the first things he had done when they’d arrived back in L.A. was go to the police. Luccio may well have helped Kyle get Tara back, though not willingly, but Kyle’s conscience wouldn’t let him off the hook. Taking all the evidence he had kept, about the girls and Luccio’s criminal activities, he had handed it all over to the LAPD. He did not feel even a flicker of guilt. The only thing he felt was shame that he had worked for Luccio for so long and helped cover up all the terrible things he had done.

  He’d had some tough questions to answer but, ultimately, they had been very receptive. Luccio had been under surveillance for a long time, and they had been waiting for an opportunity to bring him down. He hadn’t told them about Tara, there had been no reason to, and his history with the department meant that he wouldn’t face any charges for his part. He had a feeling, though, that he had just called in his last favor from them, and that if he got into trouble again, he would be on his own.

  Tara was standing by the window as he walked in and, in the brief moment before she turned to face him he saw the sadness etched on her face, cutting him to the core. He loved this woman with every fiber of his being and there was nothing he wouldn’t do for her but he couldn’t help her get her daughter back. They’d sat down and talked about it. Over and over. But whichever way they turned it, there was nothing they could do. They knew nothing about her, not even where she lived, and there was no way they were equipped to go up against Sergei and his goons. They’d managed it once, but it would tempt fate far too much to try and do it again.

  Beyond that, did this girl e
ven know who Tara was? She was a teenager now so they couldn’t just walk in and grab her, could they? So, reluctantly, they had agreed that for now they had no option but to let it go and to move on with their lives.

  At first, they’d been very careful, constantly feeling as if they were being watched. As time had gone on and nothing had happened, they had become more open and relaxed in their new life together, though the shadow of Tara’s pain was never far away.

  As soon as Tara had noticed him, she’d walked into his arms. “I missed you last night,” she murmured into his chest.

  “I missed you too. Everything ok here?” He felt her nod.

  “Shall I make you some breakfast?”

  He realised at the question that he was starving. “Yeah, that would be great. Let me just take a quick shower and freshen up first.” He felt grimy from all the less than savoury people he’d come into contact with during his shift.

  “Need any help with that?” she said coyly.

  The strength of his feelings towards her blew him away as did his body’s almost visceral reaction. Standing there, just holding her, he could feel himself stiffen at her words. Tara must have felt it too, as she pulled slightly away and looked up at him with a knowing smile on her face.

  The breath caught in his throat as, without taking her eyes from his, she reached down and placed her hand on his crotch, feeling the bulge that there was no disguising. Kyle tried to keep his breathing even as she undid his belt buckle and unzipped his fly, but it was impossible and his breathing grew heavy. Dropping to her knees, she slid his pants and shorts down to his knees, allowing his cock to spring free. She flicked her tongue against the tip, sending sharp darts of pleasure through his body. Burying his hands in her hair, he gently pulled her closer to him and, opening her mouth, she took his balls and started gently sucking.

  He felt his knees weaken and, with a groan, stepped back to support himself against the kitchen counter. Looking at her, he knew she was enjoying the effect she was having on him from the smile on her face and leaning forward she took his cock in her mouth. Gently at first, she slid her mouth up and down the length of it, cupping his balls in her hand as she did.

  “Stop,” he said, gently pulling her away, wanting to enjoy it for longer than he would if she kept going. Bringing her to her feet, he slowly untied her robe and held it open, taking in her nakedness. Her nipples were already hard and just begging to be sucked.

  Slipping the robe off her shoulders, he dropped his mouth to her right breast, softly taking the nipple in his mouth and sucking. She gasped and threw back her head, pushing her breast further towards him. He left her breast then and slowly started to kiss her down her belly, gentle feathery kisses, until he reached her pussy. Turning her around, he leaned her against the counter and, taking her right leg, he placed it over his shoulder, opening her up to him.

  With both hands on her ass he pulled her to him as he buried his face between her legs, his tongue finding its way into her pussy and lapping at her. He felt her start to tremble and pulled his face away, making her cry out in frustration. He gently turned her around and she reached into the nearby drawer and handed him a condom.

  Sliding it on, he kept his cock in his hand and gently eased it into her. He could feel her wetness and the desire to fuck her hard was almost unbearable. But he made himself slide into her with gentle, teasing strokes, coming out of her almost completely every time. She was whimpering now and pushing her ass towards him, trying to remain impaled on his cock. Thrusting harder now, he felt her as she started to spasm and her pussy tightened around his cock. With a loud cry she bucked against him and he felt her come. Unable to stop now, he thrust himself into her, hard and deep, wrapping his arm around her waist to hold her to him as he climaxed.

  Barely able to stand, they both slid down to the floor and lay there, catching their breath. He felt completely, and happily, drained and would have quite easily fallen asleep right there but the buzzing of his phone in his pants pocket interrupted the peace.

  “Long time, stranger.” He recognised the voice at the other end of the phone.

  “Sandy?”

  “None other.”

  “Gosh, how long’s it been?” He smiled at Tara as she indicated she was going to have a shower and watched her naked ass with open admiration as she walked away from him.

  “Since you left the department. Thanks for keeping in touch, by the way,” she said, a hint of irritation in her voice. He immediately felt a stab of guilt.

  “I’m sorry. It was just hard, you know?” It had been hard. Sandy was his old partner from his LAPD days. They’d been partners for years, from before he’d met and married Lori.

  “I know, but damn, I was worried about you!” There was nothing he could say to that. He had only cheated on Lori once, in the very early days of their relationship, and it had been with Sandy. He couldn’t explain to her now that the guilt he had felt after she had died had almost killed him and there was no way he could bring himself to see her.

  Changing the subject, he asked, “So, what can I do for you? And how did you get this number?”

  “Well, you would have known this if you’d stayed in touch, but I’m in narcotics now.” Kyle was not surprised. That had always been her goal. “And you left your number when you reported your old boss.”

  “That’s great. I’m happy for you, really I am. But I still don’t see where this is going,” he said, walking through to the bedroom.

  “I’ve been working on the Luccio Magotti case. We’ve been running an operation for the past few months and it culminated last night. We have him in custody on drug charges. Lots of them.”

  Kyle felt a sense of relief. It was good to know that the bastard was off the streets. “That’s great news, Sandy. I appreciate your taking the time to let me know. Keep in touch, okay?”

  “Wait a minute, Kyle. I’m not done.” Wondering what more there could be, Kyle waited. “He wants to do a deal with the D.A. “

  “What kind of deal?” Kyle said, a sinking feeling in his stomach. He did not like where this was going.

  He heard Sandy take a deep breath at the other end of the phone. “Kyle, he says he has information about who killed Lori”

  Kyle felt all the air of escape from him as he sat thudded down on the bed. He hadn’t seen that coming.

  “The D.A, decided to do the deal. I thought you deserved to know.” Kyle realized that Sandy was still talking, though her voice now sounded far away. “Has he given you a name?”

  “They’re just doing the paperwork now and then he will be re-interviewed. As soon as there is any news, I will let you know. Okay buddy?”

  Kyle ended the call in a daze. It’s not that he had forgotten about Lori, he couldn’t have, but it had been such a long time he’d almost given up hope. Then he’d met Tara and it had somehow been pushed aside. Not forgotten, but not all encompassing. He still grieved but it was no longer what he thought about every minute of every day.

  He looked up as Tara came out of the bathroom and felt a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach. What kind of a man was he? His wife and unborn child were murdered and he didn’t think about them all the time. Here he was getting on with his life as if they had never existed. He had to get out of there, had to get some air.

  Brushing off the hand she had placed on his shoulder, he ignored the hurt and confused look on her face and got dressed. It was not Tara’s fault, but if he hadn’t met her he wouldn’t be moving on with his life. In some way that he didn’t understand why that made him angry with her, an anger that had come out of nowhere. He had no idea how to deal with the different feelings that were now assaulting his mind, but he knew he needed to be alone right now.

  Unable to look her in the eye, or even speak to her, he brushed past her and walked out of the apartment without a word.

  ***

  Tara was just stepping out of the shower when she heard Kyle finish his phone call. She dried herself off and wrapped hersel
f in her robe before stepping out of the bathroom, still smiling from their encounter in the kitchen. She found him sitting on the bed, clutching the phone in his hand, looking as if his world had just come crashing down.

  The look on his face told her that something was wrong and, the smile slipping from her face, she instinctively put her hand on his shoulder. She was shocked when he brushed her hand away and got dressed. They’d been as close as two people can be half an hour ago and now he’d behaved as if he’d never seen her before.

  “What’s wrong?” He didn’t answer, instead walking out the bedroom door and then the apartment itself without a word.

  Tara was bewildered. What had just happened? He’d obviously had bad news, but why would he just leave? What was going on? He had never shown her anything but love, and this display of what could only be described as, well, dislike, shook her to her very foundation. Pulling her robe tight around her, she sat down on the bed, shaking.

  She had planned on letting him sleep after his night shift and then bring up the subject of her daughter. She needed to tell him about the messages. She’d been unable to stop herself replying to the last one and knew she’d been foolish. She needed to share the burden with him, needed him to know what was going on so that they could deal with it together. After what had just happened, though, there was no question that it would have to wait, and that she would need to keep her secret for a while longer.

  Chapter 3

  It had been hours since Kyle had left the apartment and she hadn’t heard a word from him. All her attempts to call him had gone straight to voicemail. At first she’d left a couple of messages, but when they went unanswered, she decided she would just have to wait until he was ready to talk to her. She’d run through the events of the morning in her mind until she’d made herself dizzy and still she was no closer to understanding what had happened.

  To keep herself busy, she’d gone to the store and stocked up on groceries, which she enjoyed as it was one of the rare opportunities she got to leave the apartment. She had done all the laundry, which was now washed, dried, ironed and put away. Now that she’d stopped and sat down, though, she found that the hurt and confusion had faded and left in its place an angry knot that was growing bigger the longer he stayed away. Whatever that phone call had been about did not give him the right to treat her like this.