The Crime of Protection

by Gloria Martin

  Now, after what just happened, after what Gus and I did, I realize just how pathetic that is. And I’m done with it.

  I’m not going to sit around waiting for some guy to decide whether or not he wants me. Instead, I’m going to live my life and try doing a few of the things that I really, truly want to do.

  And, at the moment, that includes going with Jake to his apartment for drinks.

  I look up at Jake with a smile on my face.

  “That sounds perfect,” I tell him. “Lead the way.”

  *****

  “He doesn’t deserve you,” Jake tells me as he pours me another glass of red wine. It’s my third and my head is starting to buzz pleasantly. I’ve told him the whole story between me and Gus. Up to and including what happened in Gus’s office that afternoon.

  “Well, I know that now,” I answer. “I just wish I’d figured it out years ago. It would’ve saved me a hell of a lot of heartache.”

  Jake sits back down next to me on his couch. It’s black with white pillows and matches the rest of the color scheme in the small, one bedroom apartment.

  “I still don’t get how he could do that,” Jake says, reaching over to the coffee table and taking a sip of his own wine. “I mean he had a beautiful girl in his lap, clearly into him and he just...stops? How could he do that?”

  “If you knew Gus you’d get it,” I answer. “He doesn’t cheat. Not on tests when we were in school, not in business and definitely not in his relationships.”

  “I guess I get that,” Jake says, “but, no matter how you try to explain it, I’ll never really understand how he could fall for Ramona when you were right there the whole time.”

  “He thinks it’s different with us,” I answer. “I mean, we’ve known each other forever and we’re practically related.”

  “You’re not actually related,” Jake says, “not by blood anyway. And knowing each other forever is supposed to be a good thing for a relationship.”

  “Sometimes,” I say.

  “Anyway, like I said,” Jake tells me, “you’re better than him. Any guy would be lucky to have you.”

  “Yeah try telling all the guys I’ve met that,” I answer. I can feel the wine I’ve had loosening my tongue, “I haven’t been on a date in a year. And I don’t get a lot of offers.”

  “I offered,” Jake says.

  “This doesn’t count,” I tell him. “You only asked me here because I was upset.”

  “That’s not the only reason,” Jake says. I feel him scoot closer to me on the couch and I can feel the warmth from his thigh press through my skirt.

  “It wasn’t?” I ask. I look up at him with a suggestive smirk on my face. I don’t know if it’s the wine, or Gus, or Jake’s gorgeous eyes but, I’m suddenly feeling very flirty.

  “No,” he answers. “Truth is, I’ve been wanting to get you up here ever since I met you.”

  “Then what took you so long?” I ask, moving closer to him.

  “Just waiting for the right moment,” he says.

  “And the right moment just happened to be when I was crying over another guy?” I ask.

  “Like I said,” he answers moving closer so that his lips are almost touching mine. “I’m always happy to prove that chivalry isn’t dead.”

  He leans in and meets my lips. He’s not gentle, not sweet or hesitant the way Gus was.

  His lips press against me passionately as his tongue forces its way into my mouth. It’s as though he doesn’t just want to have sex with me, he wants to possess me. Every inch of me.

  Intoxicated by this idea, I wrap my arms around him and push into his chest. It’s solid and warm and oh, so inviting.

  I feel him press me against the couch as his hands wander down my hips and to the hem of my skirt. He touches my knee at the exact spot where Gus did, but Jake doesn’t stop there.

  He moves his hand up along my inner thigh and a pool of desire floods to my center at the thought of where he’s going next.

  When he reaches his destination, I moan out in pleasure. He moves his lips to my neck and bites down on it as his free hand begins to fondle my still fully clothed breast.

  He continues to touch me through my panties and while I whimper and writhe, it’s not enough for me. I need to feel him against me. Skin on skin.

  I move out from under him. He looks at me confused for a moment before I begin hastily unbuttoning his shirt. I’m so quick and so eager that he laughs at me as he grabs my hands to stop their progress.

  “Wouldn’t we be more comfortable in the bedroom?” he asks.

  Not trusting my voice to speak, I look at him and nod. Immediately, he leans down and kisses me again.

  I gasp when I feel my entire weight being lifted off the couch. I wrap my legs around him, my mouth still desperately on his as he moves us to the bedroom.

  My back still straight, I soon feel myself being lowered onto the bed. When I open my eyes, he is crawling towards me with a predatory gaze.

  He moves his hands to my legs again and yanks my underwear down to my ankles. His hand again makes its way to my folds and I gasp at his touch.

  His hand circles my bare flesh over and over and over again. I cry out in agonizing pleasure. Finally, he moves his hand from my center up to my skirt.

  I lift myself from the bed to allow him to pull the skirt down over my legs. I can feel his member pressed against me through his pants as he moves up my body and unbuttons my shirt

  Soon, I am naked, completely naked in front of him.

  “God, you’re gorgeous,” he says looking me over. Then he leans down and whispers into my ear. “I’ve been wanting to fuck you since the first moment I saw you.”

  Unable to stop myself, I move my hands once again to undo the buttons on his shirt. This time, he doesn’t stop me.

  He shrugs out of his shirt and I feel his strong, toned chest against me. Soon, he is as naked as I am and our bodies are completely entwined. All thoughts of Gus or Ramona or anything else have left me.

  As his long, slender member slides into me I can’t think of anything but the intense, immense pleasure of this moment. How amazing it feels to be desired exactly as I am.

  When we fall back, exhausted and spent, I roll over with his arms wrapped securely around me.

  Here, for the first time in a long time, I fall into a blissful, easy sleep. That is until I wake up in the middle of the night to find that Jake is nowhere to be found and there are voices coming from the living room.

  *****

  “And you’re positive there’s no way she’s going to find out?”

  I’m standing by the bedroom door listening through the crack like a child listening to her parents argue. The female voice belongs to Ramona. I know that much for sure.

  “Babe, it’s fine,” Jake says to her. My breath hitches in my throat and my heart starts to pound when he calls her ‘babe’. “I’ve got her eating out of the palm of my hand. After tonight, she’s not going to give her stepbrother a second thought. I promise you.”

  “You seem very sure of yourself,” Ramona says.

  “Have I ever let you down before?”

  “There’s a first time for everything. This girl’s not some ditzy little secretary. She’s smart,” Ramona says. I can’t help but feel a small swell of pride. “And she’s uber-protective of Gus. If she gets even a hint—”

  “So, what are you saying? We should get rid of her too?” Jake asks.

  “Don’t be stupid,” Ramona answers. “Two deaths in one family will start to look suspicious. Just keep her away from Gus as much as possible.”

  “Until the wedding,” Jake says.

  “Well, after the wedding, we won’t have to worry about it,” Ramona says, “just like always. There’ll be a tragic boating accident, blah, blah, blah, we take the money and get out.”

  My heart stops beating. I know what they’re planning now. I know what’s going to happen to Gus. My eyes fill with tears and I don’t want to listen to anything el
se. But, I can’t seem to pull myself away from the door.

  “You promise this is the last one, right?” Jake asks. His voice is quieter than it was before. He almost sounds sincere.

  “Honey,” Ramona says in that fake flattering voice I hate, “of course this is the last one! I promised, didn’t I?”

  “You did,” Jake answers, though he sounds uncertain.

  “Then trust me,” Ramona whispers and I hear the fabric of her skirt slide against the couch.

  I’m sure they’re kissing and my heart constricts. I try not to but, I can’t help imagining his hands in her hair, his mouth desperate and insistent on hers just as they’d been with me not three hours ago.

  “I’ve got to head out. I don’t want to keep you from Emma too long,” Ramona said.

  “Oh, don’t worry about her,” Jake says. “She’s sound asleep. Stay a little while.”

  I suddenly have a desperate urge to burst open the door and throttle him. But, I know that would do no good. Ramona would just charm her way back to Gus and then kill him herself. All while I was locked away for assault or possible murder.

  “I can’t,” Ramona says finally. “I’ll see you tomorrow. I love you.”

  “I love you too,” Jake says.

  I hear the door close and I know that Jake’s coming back into the room. I rush to my side of the bed, lay down and close my eyes.

  I don’t fall back to sleep. Instead, I think about what I’m going to do next.

  The first thing will be to get up early, dress and leave before Jake can see me. Then, I’ll have to go to Gus and break the news to him.

  Not only is his fiancée cheating on him, but, she’s also a raging psychopath who wants to murder him for his fortune.

  *****

  “I don’t believe it,” Gus says. I’ve just told him what I heard last night. He’s standing beside his desk, staring at me with hard eyes.

  “It’s the truth,” I say quietly. “I heard it myself.”

  “Emma, if this is about what happened here last night, I told you, I’m sorry.”

  “It’s not about that,” I say, feeling my ire growing now. The fact that he thinks I would make something like this up just to get back at him for kissing me and leaving makes my blood begin to boil.

  I take a deep breath to calm myself down and continue as best I can.

  “No matter how I felt, no matter how upset I was...I wouldn’t lie about something like this,” I say.

  “You must’ve been pretty upset to run home with some guy you’ve only known two weeks,” he says sullenly. “That’s something I never thought you’d do either.”

  He’s looking at me through squinted eyes and there’s something more than anger behind them. Something like jealousy. As though he’s upset that I would go home with Jake at all.

  One month ago this look would have sent my insides into a dance of delight. But now, we’ve both got bigger problems.

  “Look,” I say, “all I’m saying is...postpone the wedding. Look into Ramona a little bit. Look into Jake. I mean, what do you really know about either of them?”

  “You want me to do a background check on my own fiancée?” he asks, as though the idea is near to criminal.

  “I’m saying, I know what I heard,” I answer. “She’s not who you think she is. And it’s got nothing to do with you and me. I just...I don’t want to see you die in some planned boating accident. Is that so hard to understand?!”

  My voice has raised to a fevered pitch and I can feel an angry swell of heat in my face. I’m standing in front of Gus glaring at him in a way that tells him not to press me.

  He recognizes the look and I see him begin to back away towards his desk.

  “Okay,” he answers, “let’s say, for arguments sake, I do believe you. Let’s say I postpone the wedding or...or even call it off.”

  I can tell he’s thought about this. All of this since I told him to go home and sleep on it last night. Something in his voice tells me that he may have been planning to call the wedding off anyway.

  “If Ramona and Jake are planning...what you think they are...they’re going to try to get at least some of my money any way they can. What happens if Ramona sues me for wedding expenses, or, worse make some kind of allegation against me.”

  “You’re saying a lawsuit is worse than you being dead?” I ask, my arms still folded over my chest.

  “I’m saying we’d need evidence,” Gus says, “I mean, if what you heard last night was true...it sounds like they’ve done this before. And, if I don’t fall for it, even if she doesn’t sue me or try something else, they may do it again to some other rich man. I couldn’t live with that.”

  I uncross my arms and think about that. I have to admit he’s right. I knew when Ramona promised Jake that this was ‘the last time’, it meant that there had been times before. I also knew that, no matter what she promised, it would not be the last time. Something in her voice told me that she had no intention of stopping her little game. She liked it too much.

  “All right,” I answer. “How are we going to get evidence? We’d probably need them to confess, or something like that.”

  I watch as Gus purses his lips and begins to pace in front of his desk. This is the look he always gets when he’s thinking.

  “A background check will take too long and probably won’t turn up anything,” he says, “If they’re professionals, they’ve probably changed names and addresses several times.”

  “And, if they are professionals, they’re practiced at this,” I say. “If we try to confront them, they’ll just deny the whole thing.”

  Gus stops pacing and turns to look at me. His lips aren’t pursed anymore and he’s staring at me like he’s seeing me for the first time.

  “Emma,” he says. “Are you sure you told me everything you heard last night? Word for word?”

  “As much as I remember, yes,” I say slowly wondering what he’s got planned.

  “If that’s true,” he says, “then Ramona’s nervous about you but, Jake isn’t. He says he’s got you eating out of the palm of his hand.”

  “Yeah,” I answer quietly. “The arrogant prick.”

  “Maybe,” Gus says, “but, arrogant pricks tend to be very sloppy and pretty stupid.”

  “What are you saying?” I ask.

  “I’m saying you’re going to confront Jake about what you heard last night,” Gus answers.

  I remember the sound of Jake’s voice, what he said when he thought I was asleep. I don’t want to face him again.

  “That won’t work,” I say hurriedly. “He’ll deny everything.”

  “Trust me, he won’t,” Gus says. “I’ve dealt with guys like that before. They think they can tell women whatever they want and get away with it.”

  “Why can’t you talk to Ramona?” I ask.

  “Because,” Gus says moving to his chair and flopping down into it, “she really will deny everything and I’ll probably believe her. You’ve seen us together. You know she’d tell me to go jump off a cliff and I’d do it.”

  “I wasn’t going to say anything,” I mutter, a smile coming to my face.

  “I know you weren’t,” Gus says with the beginnings of a smile himself. “That doesn’t mean you weren’t thinking it.”

  My smile grows as I look at him and I can tell I don’t need to answer. For one moment, it’s as though we’re not talking about a plan to murder Gus at all. For a moment, it’s like nothing’s changed and we’re just about to go into a particularly difficult business meeting.

  “Ok,” I say, “I’ll do it.”

  *****

  We’ve got a plan. The signal for me to ask Jake if we can talk in private is Gus leaving his office “for a lunch meeting.”

  This means that I’m forced to sit at my desk with Jake all morning making plans for place settings at the wedding reception, and pretending like nothing’s wrong.

  “You ran off on me this morning,” he says when he’s sure no one can hea
r us. “I was planning on making us breakfast.”

  “The marketing guys asked me to come in early to look at the campaign for the new software,” I lie. “Sorry, I should’ve at least said goodbye.”

  “Don’t worry about it,” he says with that charming smile. The look that used to make me blush while my stomach did backflips now makes me cringe.

  Luckily, he doesn’t say anything more about our one night stand. We continue talking about ice sculptures and seating arrangements while my palms begin to sweat and my heart races with anxiety.

  Finally, at eleven thirty, Gus leaves his office. This is it.

  I turn to Jake and ask if I can see him in private. I nod to Gus’s empty office and he smirks at me before standing from his chair and following.

  Once inside, I see he’s still brandishing that suggestive smirk.

  “Sneaking into the boss’s office for a ‘private conversation’?” he asks raising an eyebrow. “Apparently I’ve been a bad influence on you.”

  I feel something like spiders begin to crawl up my spine at his insinuation. I shake them off as best I can and turn to him with a full frown.

  “So, I heard you had a visitor last night,” I tell him, my arms crossed over my chest.

  “Well, I should hope you’d know about that,” he says looking at me with a smirk. “You were there, after all.”

  “I mean another visitor,” I answer. “She came in when you thought I was asleep.”

  Jake looks at me confused.

  “What are you talking about?”

  “I heard everything, Jake,” I answer him, “I know about Ramona, I know about your plan, I know about all of it.”

  His shoulders slump and his face goes pale for a moment. But, one second later, he shakes it off and looks at me with a neutral expression.

  “Have you told anyone else?” Jake asks.

  “No,” I lie. “I wanted to wait for you. I thought you might have some...I don’t know...explanation or something.”

  “You think there might be a reasonable explanation for what you heard?” he asks now moving towards me menacingly.

  “I don’t know,” I answer as boldly as I can. “That’s why I’m asking you.”

  He pauses nods for a moment and looks away. Finally, he looks back at me and heaves a sigh.