“Yes, no matter what I said or did, I was corrected and criticized.”
“Why would your mother do that?”
“It’s the reason why we’re estranged. It means my mother despises me too.”
“I know what it means.”
“We barely talk anymore, if at all. Haven’t spoken in a long time.” Amelia shrugged.
“You seem pretty happy about that.”
“Not happy exactly, but it’s common for our family. She hates me. They all do, I’m not good enough for them.”
“Maria couldn’t hate anyone.”
“How would you know what she hates? Wait a minute. You know her don’t you?” She looked up at him curiously.
“Yes, we’ve met before. A long time ago.”
“My, my my. Pray tell, how?” Amelia inquired.
“Frankly, Ms. Antonov that is none of your business.”
“Is anything my business?”
“In my life, no.”
“Well, can you at least tell me if she ever spoke to you about me?”
“No, it must have been before you were adopted, about 15 years ago,” Jack said as he sighed before he went back to surveying the car. “Besides, mentioning you must cause her pain, and I wouldn’t do that to Maria for anything.”
“Maria, is it?” Amelia asked with a beaming smile. “Well, well, well. You’re a little too vanilla aren’t you?”
“Vanilla what?”
“You know what I mean. You’re a little too dull and are a stick in the mud to have been escorting my mother around town. Plus, she’s probably way older than you-”
“As I said, my relationship with Maria is none of your business, thank you. It was a long time ago, end of story.”
Jack didn’t owe anyone an explanation for his history with Maria Antonov, the only person in the world who affected his life more than anyone in the world and not necessarily in an ideal way. They had met when he was in graduate school, and she was on vacation in the United States from Russia. Jack had courted her for several months and was to elope in Vegas until she left him standing at the altar with no explanation, just a short note saying goodbye. She was amazingly sweet before that, qualities he didn’t see about her daughter at all.
“You don’t really strike me as the adventurous type, and I bet you didn’t meet her at the gym either. I wonder which interests you both had in common.” Amelia eyed him suspiciously.
“We were acquainted, that is all.”
“Oh, that doesn’t surprise me at all. My mother was very friendly with all kinds of men before she met father.”
“I don’t like what you're implying, Ms. Antonov.”
“Why, hurt by the truth?”
He started to give an exaggerated laugh. “I can see that everything I read and heard everyone talk about is true. You like to find a weak spot and attack.”
“In more ways than one,” Amelia said to herself. “Did I find yours?”
Jack didn’t answer the question and returned to the car. “Mel’s always looking to start a fight like she’s got an ax to grind. Probably is your silly, little way of getting attention.”
She laughed haughtily. “In my family, I’d have to die to get attention from my parents. Did you meet my Uncle Nicholas? A big ball of wonderfulness?”
“I didn’t meet a Nicholas. She never actually introduced me to any family members, and now that I think about it, she hardly talked about herself. The one thing that I know is that her family was well respected. I didn’t see any royalty or celebrity status in your file, so I’m assuming it was just by notoriety. But I suppose you are not. Do you get your share of the limelight when you walk around with that chip on your shoulder? Don’t try bullying me like the way you probably muscle everyone else. I don’t give a damn if people say things to piss you off, unlike your mother.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Nothing. Except that maybe you’ll find that Maria probably misses you.” Jack said.
“I don’t care if she misses me. I don’t want to see her or them right now. I have priorities.”
He heard a catch in her throat and glanced up to see a tear in her eye. “Scared?”
“No!”
Jack laughed at Amelia’s exaggerated response. “What kind of priorities then?” When Amelia clammed up, he said: “Yeah, you’re scared.”
“What do you know? At least I have a family.”
Jack didn’t like talking about himself. His past was his own business, and he was allowed to ignore it and hopefully, forget it. So he kept his mouth shut, which seemed to anger the beautiful Mel Antonov.
As he continued to fiddle with the car, she said, “You are infuriating, you know that!”
“Why, because you can’t push me around?”
“I’m not trying to push you around!”
“Oh, yes, you are.”
“I’m not trying to do a damn thing to you. I-”
“Oh please. You make everyone feel threatened by you enough to have them jump through hoops or walk on eggshells, so they don’t upset you.” Jack stood up then and looked directly into her eyes. “Well, you can try and infuriate me all you want, Ms. Antonov. But I’m not going to jump through hoops.”
She leaned against the car and glared back at him. “You can’t be affected by me, huh?”
“No, not by you.”
“Think you won’t jump through hoops?”
“I just don’t like your manipulative behavior is all.”
“Oh really?” She began to smile. “Sometimes manipulation can be incredible.” She then came away from the car and walked up to Jack and grabbed the lapel of his suit with her hands.
She pulled him close but didn’t wait for him to react. She lifted her mouth up to his and caught his lips quickly. She was warm to him. When she slanted her mouth across his, Jack felt his body come alive with sensations he hadn’t felt in a long time, everywhere. A few minutes later, Amelia’s tongue found his and teased it for a little bit.
Feelings and sensations Jack thought were long gone suddenly came alive from a place buried deeply, and it surprised the hell out of him. Amelia pressed her body closer to his, and that’s when his mind went blank, and he gave in.
Before he came to his senses about what he was actually doing, he wrapped his arms around her. He felt a rush of exhilaration and softly muttered her name as his insistent mouth kissed her back gently at first and then with an increasing intensity that made her cling to him. His hands caressed up and down her back and then to her waist as his fingers ever so subtly grazed the skin under the hem of her shirt. He couldn’t seem to get enough, and it was as if the world stood still for Amelia. His lips sent tremors along her nerve endings, evoking sensations she didn’t expect to feel. She just wanted to play a game with him, a silly game.
Amelia’s realization sent her back to reality, and she ended it quickly. She let go of his suit jacket, stepped back and grinned at the point she just proved. “See? Sometimes things that are manipulative can be beautiful.”
“Suddenly infuriated, he said, “Hellish you mean. You like to mess with people’s emotions, don’t you?”
“I like to have fun,” Amelia emphasized.
“You like being reckless, I think. I wonder if it ever bit you in the ass.”
He couldn’t stop himself. Mel’s haughtiness, her cocky demeanor, her lips, and mouth – all of it triggered an unexplainable anger in Jack. He suddenly grabbed her by the arms, pulled her to him and kissed her hard with every ounce of frustration he had inside.
The raw masculinity at which he kissed her had sent shivers that made her whole body tremble. “I’ll show you a game….” he started to mutter
When Amelia didn’t respond, he backed her up against her car and opened her lips with an erotic forcefulness that made her reach up and pull him more down to her and the rest of his words were lost as they kissed. He groaned loudly, low in his throat and his arms enveloped her, gathering her tighter
as he pressed more against her.
The kiss went on for several minutes until he tasted blood. He let Amelia go right then and stepped back quickly.
Amelia cleared her throat and adjusted her shirt. She lifted her hand to her lip and stared at the dime sized blood that was now on her fingertips.
“I don’t like being manipulated,” Jack growled.
“I wasn’t trying to manipulate you. I just thought it would be funny just to ruffle your feathers a little.”
“You couldn’t irritate me verbally so you thought you could try a silly way to get a reaction out of me. That was a stupid thing to do.” He snapped and started to pace around.
“Oh come on, you’re not as mean as you try to be,” Amelia said in return.
He cursed to himself as he continued to pace around. “There’s a big difference between you and me, Ms. Antonov.”
“Pray tell, what is that?”
“You have an ax to grind. You like to get a rise out of people and push them away. You feed on making people feel bad, so they don’t have the chance to make you feel bad.”
“And you?” she questioned.
“Me?” he laughed. “Oh, I just walk away.”
Chapter Four
She wanted to ask him a dozen questions right then, but the way he had reacted before he had wanted to walk away was a sign she should listen to common sense and not push further.
He didn’t give her a chance to push him even further. He unlocked her car door, started the engine which caused a loud grinding noise and backed it slowly a few feet to unpin the vehicle from the damaged brick wall.
He shut off the engine quickly and just sat there quietly looking straight ahead. He sat there debating with himself whether or not it was worth dealing with Mel Antonov further, and then he sighed.
“I’ll call a tow truck for you, and then I’ll take you home later.”
“Don’t do me any favors, Jack. I will just walk back.”
“No.” He said sharply. He kept his eyes forward and gripped the wheel tighter.
He was strange, all right. One stupid joke and he acted like a crazy man. He seemed to be normal one minute and then peculiar the next.
“You aren’t walking home, injured like that. Besides, unless you live within a block from here I am not letting you go off on your own.”
“Like what? It’s just a cut lip and a bruise. It’s not a big deal, it’s not the first time for me.”
“That’s not what I would call it.” He took the keys out of the ignition, shoved them in her hand and walked away towards the back door to the building.
“I don’t know what will be worse, walking home or being alone in a car with you,” Amelia shouted after him.
“Unless you want me to take you to the hospital. At the rate you slammed into the wall, you could have a concussion.” He shouted over his shoulder.
Irritated, Amelia screamed to herself and then shouted after him, “It was just a kiss, for Christ’s sake! I was just trying to have fun!” She took out another cigarette out of the pack in her jean pocket and kicked the car’s tires. She needed to calm down.
She didn’t know why she had done it. Jack looked like he needed to be shocked a little. She hadn’t meant to anger him, at least not really. She wondered if Jack was right if she liked stirring up trouble all the time. Was that how trouble always found her and why did he seem to get under her skin so well?
He came outside and silently walked up to her a few minutes later with a small first aid kit.
“Geez, why do you always do that?”
“Do what?” Jack inquired.
“Stuff like that! You know, like show up all of a sudden.”
Jack didn’t answer but put the first aid kit on top of the trunk of her car. “Here, let me take care of that cut lip. It’s still bleeding a little.”
“Don’t bother, I’m fine.” She waved him off.
“Yeah right. Your only other option is letting me take you to the hospital to get checked out so the doctors can have a look at you.”
“It’s just a fucking scratch. It’s not the first injury I’ve ever had.” She resigned as she leaned back against the car.
“Have it your way,” Jack said as he closed the first aid kit. “I called for a tow. They should be here soon.”
“Fine.” Amelia gave in and started to shake. The sun had begun to set by this time, and the sky was turning into a mesmerizing lavender color.
“What’s wrong? Are you cold?” he asked.
“No, I’m fine.”
Jack gave an exasperated sigh and walked to his car. He showed up a few minutes later and came back with a navy blue windbreaker and placed it around her shoulders. Amelia slipped her arms into the jacket, and she instantly felt enveloped in warmth.
“Why do you always have to be that way?” he said as he started applying the antiseptic cream on her cut lip gingerly.
Forty-five minutes and a lot of paperwork later, Amelia was now in Jack’s luxury sedan as they drove down the highway to the Petrovich family home.
“Nice car.”
“Thank you.”
“You must be loaded,” Amelia said to herself, not caring if Jack answered the rhetorical statement.
“I do fine for myself.”
“The agency must be paying you a lot.”
“They pay adequately, not that it’s any of your business.”
“Makes sense. Car new?”
“No why?”
“I don’t know.” Amelia shrugged. “Just seems new.”
“I don’t drive it much if that’s what you're asking.”
“Are you a homebody, West?” Amelia said with a raised eyebrow.
“What’s wrong with being a homebody?”
“Nothing is wrong,” she said. “If you like going crazy with no one to talk to.”
“In the peace and quiet?”
“Are you trying to hint that I should stop talking?”
“If I wanted you to stop talking, I would have told you by now.” He said as he stepped on the gas to egg the car to go faster. The engine roared as they sped.
Jack West no longer said a word then, and Amelia pretended to be interested in the passing scenery. Things hadn’t changed much since she was here last. The same homes owned by the same families still stood along the highway. But in her life, everything was different.
Amelia spent most of her childhood training to prepare for a fight, she still didn’t quite understand. While the family had allowed her to tag along on small missions that included collecting overdue payments from petty thugs and small time drug dealers who unfortunately met their demise as instructed, they still denied her from participating in the bigger jobs. She didn’t know what the larger jobs were but insisted she continue to prepare for them. They didn’t trust her still.
The same ones that ended Uncle Nicholai’s life. She couldn’t help but think to herself that if she was there, she could have been of assistance and he would have been alive today. She’s spent the last ten years training hard trying to show that she was capable of taking care of the bigger tasks but she still wasn’t good enough.
Reckless and incapable of controlling her emotions, they said. It didn’t matter to them that she had a gift for navigating through cyber security systems with ease or that she could take down men twice her size. Even then she still wasn’t good enough, she was too weak.
What in the hell did that mean anyway? Did they mean she was weak? She was not weak, she refused to be. Once done here, they would find new respect for her. Then and only then would they finally see how she not only was good enough, she was the best choice they had.
She had to use her cover as a CIA agent to infiltrate case files and as well as use the opportunity to obtain information as to who within the agency was responsible for Uncle Nicholai’s death. Once she found out, they’d be sorry, and she would return with the new found respect she rightfully deserved.
Twenty minutes later they arrived at
the long driveway that led to Amelia’s temporary home. Carefully, as the sedan started to bounce on the windy road, they headed down under the canopy of trees.
The vehicle suddenly stopped, and Amelia awoke from her daydream. She was home.
“Want to come inside?” Amelia asked as she unbuckled her seatbelt.
“You go ahead.” He said, keeping his eyes facing forward.
“What? Come on. Do you want some coffee? Tea? It is a rare chance I’m inviting someone, let alone you, inside my home.” Amelia teased.
“Just go inside.”
“Why are you trying to brush me off?”
“I am not trying to brush you off. Just go inside.” He said stubbornly.
“For fuck sake. I don’t know what the big deal is.” She said. She was now annoyed at his odd behavior. “Look, I’m not going to do anything nor am I inviting you in for anything more than actual coffee or tea.”
“I didn’t think you insinuated anything more than a real beverage. Have a good evening; I’ll see you at the office.” He said still facing forward not meeting her eyes and shifting the car into reverse.
“That’s it? You’re kicking me out of the car?”
“It’s nothing personal.”
“Nothing personal? Nothing personal?!!?!?? You were the one who kissed me the second time!”
“Ms. Antonov…”
“It’s Mel!”
“Fine, Mel! I don’t want coffee okay! Get out of my vehicle, god dammit!”
“Fine!” she yelled as she got out of the sedan and slammed his passenger door.
“Finally!” he backed the car up and then turned it around to head back out down the long winding driveway. Within minutes he was gone.
“Asshole.” She muttered to herself as she headed up the porch steps to her front door.
The door was strangely closed but unlocked. Amelia slowly pulled out her gun out of holster underneath the windbreaker Jack had loaned her earlier that day. She ascended the porch steps and slowly opened the front door. As Amelia slowly walked into the house past the threshold, she listened intently for any sounds of a possible intruder that could still be present. Carefully, she stepped further into her living room and peered around the corner, with slight relief she saw her mother and father in the middle of what might be a private discussion in the den. The living room fireplace was already burning a glowing ember that emitted warmth throughout the house.
Break Away Page 29
