by Riley Murphy
Ted shook his head at how stiff and to the point the guy was. “Patel has some pictures I want. He’ll know what you’re talking about when you approach him. I want all copies and originals. Have him sign his life away on that, okay? If I ever find a copy of one of them, even ten years from now on someone’s computer in the tundra, I’ll be collecting from him, got it?”
“Sure. What does he get in return?”
“I’m cashing in my ironclad insurance policy I had on the guy. He’ll get the pictures I took of him the day I visited with him at his office. I’ll shoot over a couple. Feel free to send them to him as incentive.”
Alistair whistled. “Interesting. Does this have something to do with Nehr?”
“Don’t worry. Josephine Nehr and I history. I’m doing this trade as a parting gift to her, is all.”
By the time he hung up and polished off his beer he figured he better check to make sure Jo had gotten a cab. He went up to the second floor and peered out of his recently installed palladium window. With a sigh he turned away. She was still on the doorstep. Damn.
He whipped out his phone. “Cam?”
“Yeah, boss?”
“I need you to swing by the house. Ms. Nehr will be waiting at the door for you to take her home.”
“Right now?”
“Yes.”
Ted went back downstairs and waited. He was sure Jo wouldn’t go willingly and fifteen minutes later, after she threw a tantrum and Cam called him with the news that she wasn’t budging, Ted put a call in to her friend. If there was any way he could leave without having to deal with this he would have. The last thing he wanted was Colin showing up, because then he knew the odds of disaster striking would be doubled upon her arrival. But the way he saw it? He had no choice.
Fuck.
* * * * *
Jo shielded her eyes when the car headlights came down the street right toward the house. Her ass was numb and every muscle in her body begged for her to get up, but she wasn’t going to because Cameron might decide to grab her and carry her off if she did. Already she’d had to take drastic measures to keep him the twenty feet they currently had between them, and she wasn’t ready to give up any ground. Not until Ted talked to her. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath and willed the aches to go away. She’d get through this even if it killed her.
Two minutes later, she wanted to die. The car stopped and she gauged it was right in front of his house. Then the car door slammed and she couldn’t hold back a flinch that turned into a deepening cringe as heels clicked on the walkway. High heels. Now she was going to be mortified while he had a woman visit him?
“Cameron Tate. I thought you were better than this? Letting a woman sit out in the damp and cold. Shame on you.”
“Collie?” Colin probably didn’t hear her, but that didn’t matter. Jo was so relieved it wasn’t one of Ted’s groupie subs she could have smiled. Almost.
“Look, I tried to get Ms. Nehr up so I could take her home, but she…she bit me.”
Jo’s eyes snapped open and through her tear-hazy and barely focused eyes, she saw her friend wave him off. “Oh come on now. You’ve got a hundred and a half pounds on her, am I right? How bad could it be? I’m going to tell your mother on Sunday when I see her. I promise.”
Jo waited to speak until Colin got within three feet of her. She held up her hand and said, “I’m not going. I’m staying here until he t-talks t-to me.”
“Are you crying? Jo?”
She turned away but she was sure, despite the blackness, that Colin could see that she was.
“What did he do to you? Tell me.”
“He shut the door in my face,” she took a deep breath and turned back to look up at her friend, “right after he told me that he and I will have n-nothing to do w-with one another ever again.”
“I see.”
For some reason that phrase made her feel better. “You sound like Ethan.”
“I’m going to be Ethan tonight. All I want to hear from you, is ‘yes, Colin’, you understand? Now come on, get up.”
“If I leave I might never…”
“Oh fuck him. It would serve him right if you never spoke to him again, that’s what I’m thinking.”
She held her hands out and Jo stared at them for a beat before she relented and grabbed hold, allowing Colin to pull her up.
“Hey, where are your shoes?”
“I,” she sucked in a breath and let it out in a rush, “one’s in the tree and the other one is behind the holly bush. It’s like fighting a panther to get behind it, and with the one stuck up there?” She pointed to the Japanese maple branch where her BCBG pump dangled. “I saw no point.”
Colin mouthed the word “wow” and said, “You should have thrown stones.”
“I tried but Ted told Cam to make sure I didn’t get hold of any.”
She took Colin’s arm and squeezed in close. For the first time in hours she felt almost normal as they walked down the walkway toward the car.
“You see, Cam?” Colin said as they got close to the iron-gate entrance. “This wasn’t so hard. Would you be a dear and get the passenger door?”
“Sure thing, Mrs. White.”
“Jo, hold onto the gate for a moment, would you?”
Jo side-stepped a pebble as she took hold of the gate, because Colin had abandoned her. The next thing she knew there was a loud crash, more like a high-pitched shatter, and then an alarm going off.
“There,” Colin said very calmly as she dusted off her palms. “Now said asshole has hold of the biggest stone in his yard, so you can’t get hold of it even if you wanted to.”
Jo blinked and shook her head. Colin was smiling and Jo knew what that meant. Ted better not come out here pissing vinegar because Colin was furious.
“Thanks, Cam. Jo, get in.”
“You…you broke Mr. Basel’s new window.”
“So? Get in, Jo.”
“He’s not going to be happy about it.”
Colin slammed the door but Jo could still hear the exchange through the closed passenger window.
“He’d be more of an asshole than I already think he is if he were happy about it.”
“What?”
“Would you like me to wait here until the police arrive?”
“I think you should. That window cost a fortune and it was just installed. Mr. Basel—” Cameron checked his text.
“You were saying?”
“I, ah… Have a good evening, Mrs. White.” He rushed to open the driver side door for her and Colin hopped in.
“Thank you, Cameron. I’m sure we will.”
They drove for nearly three full minutes in silence and then Colin’s cell went off. When she made an immediate right Jo sat forward and scanned the store parking lot. “Why are we stopping?”
Colin pointed to her phone. “Ethan. He doesn’t like me to drive and talk at the same time. Sorry.”
Jo sat back and looked out the window while her friend answered.
“Hi. Yes I know. That’s why I left you that note.” There was a long pause and then Colin sighed. “She’s fine. Him? I don’t care. No. I will. Okay, I am. Just a minute.”
“Jo?”
“Yeah,”
“Ethan wants to know if you’ve eaten dinner.”
“I’m not hungry.”
Colin ignored her grumble and spoke to Ethan again. “No she didn’t. All right.”
“Ethan says he’s going to make you something.”
Jo shrugged and Colin fielded the action.
“Jo says great. No, I swear she did, I just had my hand over the receiver.” Colin’s eyes bugged out at Jo in a warning to behave. “We’re coming straight home now. Do we have wine at the house? Great. I will. Love you too.”
When Colin clicked off Jo said, “I quit drinking remember?”
“Yeah, but that doesn’t mean I have to.”
It was silent again as Colin made her way back into the evening traffic flow. Jo watched her for a second in the flas
hes of light that lit the car interior from the street lamps. Colin really was the best. Clearly she wasn’t going to press her until Jo was ready to be pressed.
“You broke his fancy window. Even I wasn’t going for that one when I threw my shoes.”
“Yeah, I was never very good at softball.”
“You shouldn’t have.”
“Too late now.”
Jo put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed. “Since it’s already done though, thanks.”
* * * * *
Several nights later at the club, Ted collected the markers from one of the steel drawers, and then went to the wall cubbies and grabbed his black bag.
“Hey.”
He stiffened when Ethan came in sporting the “the look” Ted knew so well. E was ticked, no doubt over the situation with Jo. “Hi. I’ll be out of your way in a minute.”
“Markers? Are you going to be scribbling on some female flesh tonight? I thought tonight was poker night.”
It was poker night, and since it had been more than a month that he’d sat in on a game, a game where he’d played more with Jo than with the cards, he figured he needed a distraction tonight. He’d called in four different subs to entertain the guys, but mostly him, while he tried to forget about her.
“It is, but I wanted to shake things up a bit. Make it more interesting, you know?” He pulled a piece of paper out of a drawer and used one of the markers to write down a number. “Here.”
Ethan looked down at it and frowned. “What’s this?”
“What you owe me for your wife pulling a Mickey Mantle on my new window.”
“It’s over five grand!”
“Yeah,” he tapped the paper and squinted, “that’s even after they gave me ten percent discount for being their new best customer.”
“With that aim,” Ethan folded the paper and put it in his pocket. “I’d say Nolan Ryan was a better description.”
Ted didn’t say anything to that. He knew E wasn’t at the club and in this room to discuss this shit, and what he did want to discuss, Ted didn’t. “Do you want to sit in on the game tonight?”
“No and I’m not sure you should either.”
Ted adjusted his bag, clenching it under his arm and raised a brow. “Oh?”
“Jo’s on her way here.”
Ted worked to maintain his calm even as he hated the rush of excitement that coursed through him at the thought of seeing her again.
“Look, let’s cut the crap. Jo’s upset and desperate to make things right with you, so I don’t think you should stick around.”
“I shouldn’t stick around? You want me to leave? This is my club.”
“So? You know she’s reckless and if you really mean to stick to a clean break with her, leaving is the best thing to do.”
“No.”
Ted couldn’t say what affected him more. The prospect of seeing her again or his buddy choosing her side over his.
“She’s got a plan in mind and from what Colin told me it isn’t a smart one. She couldn’t be talked out of it.”
“Who are you more worried about, me or her?”
“You. I’ve never seen you like this and Jo’s…well, she can be a handful, I know.”
“She’s a big girl and I’m no monster. Don’t worry, I’ll try not to make a scene when I kick her out.”
Ted went to walk past him, but Ethan grabbed his arm. “I don’t want you to do that.”
“What do you mean?” Ted spied the set line of his friend’s mouth and scowled. “You’re serious.” He yanked his arm out of his grasp. “What happened to the Three Musketeers? Me, you and David. We made a pact, remember? And now you’re taking a woman’s side over mine?”
“It’s not just any woman. It’s Jo. And as to that, you’ve already done enough damage. Let it go. Disappear tonight and maybe by tomorrow she’ll forget her plan to stalk you and come to her senses.”
“I don’t think I want to do that. Running away and hiding is not my style for anyone. Even her. Especially her because she’ll take that as a win and you know how I hate to lose.”
Ethan sighed. “I thought as much, but I figured I’d give it a shot. I’m going to leave Michael here in case there’s a problem and she needs a ride home.”
Ted nodded. “I’ll try to behave—”
“There’s that word.” Ethan tilted his head and winced. “Try? You’ve never been good with that and in your present mood I’m worried.”
“You want the truth?” Ted snapped his bag out from under his arm and tossed it up, catching it. “I’m worried too, so we’ll just have to hope she doesn’t push me too far.”
Ted was still hearing the echo of those words as he entered the green room and spied his usual posse at the poker table. The invited subs were scattered about the room. Two wore nothing at all, while another wore a chainmail halter with matching skirt, and the other sported black leather shorts and a tank top. He should have been stoked. These were four of his favorites. His favorites before Jo came along.
“I’ve got the markers.” He put them on the table and grabbed one. The dark-copper-brown one. Nearly the exact color of Jo’s henna. Turning to Ruth, one of the all-naked subs, he smiled. “I’m ready to do a little scribbling.”
“I don’t see why you feel the need to constantly bring women in here. It’s distracting,” Dillon grumbled as he shuffled the cards.
“Exactly.” Ted took a seat in his chair and waited for Ruth to approach. “Down here,” he pointed to the floor and added, “with your back toward me.”
When she’d done as he told her, he looked over at Dillon. “Deal and don’t watch then.”
Dillon tossed the cards to each player. “I didn’t say I didn’t like to watch.”
Ted shook his head over that one. He waited until they’d played two hands before he picked up his marker and leaned down. “Get your hair out of the way.” She did. Ruth, he knew, liked things short and simple. No long commands, no distracting questions. She was a real bare-to-the-bones kind of sub and as long as he got her off eventually she’d do pretty much anything he told her to.
“Feel the letters I write and say them out loud as I print them.”
“Yes Sir.”
Ted finished the first.
“W.”
He didn’t acknowledge she was right other than to move on to the next letter.
“H.”
He wrote the next one.
“O”
He was just about to write the next letter when he stopped. “Repeat?”
“O?”
Apparently he wasn’t the only one distracted tonight. “No. Concentrate.” He traced over the previous mark slowly. His unhurried action made her shiver.
“A.”
“Very good.”
“C. K.”
He paused. “New word.”
“M. E. Whack me.”
“Right.” Ted playfully spanked one of her bottom cheeks, and ordered, “Now go around to each of my guys here and present your back to them. Maybe you’ll get lucky and they’ll do it.”
He picked up his cards and checked the door for the fifteenth time. Maybe Ethan was right. Maybe he should disappear because once Ruth finished making the rounds she’d be back to kneeling at his feet, and then what was he going to do with her? She would expect more playtime from him, but his heart wasn’t in it. How could it be when his mind was only focusing in one thing?
Jo.
* * * * *
Jo had nearly a week to make her decision. She wasn’t like most women who wore their heartache on their sleeves and needed comfort and company to get by. No, Jo internalized all her sadness by herself for days. Dreaming up melodramatic plans of how she could win Ted back, but in the end she put those fanciful dreams of manipulation away and faced the reality. She’d have to go to him on his terms. There’d be no more letting the defiant battle rage in her head over how unfair his terms seemed to be to her at times. She needed to get over the fear of being seen a
s less of a woman when she truly accepted all that he wanted of her. Fortunately she’d had the time to figure out that she was more of a woman in his care and keeping for the short time they’d spent together, than she was in her whole adult lifetime without him. The most important concept he’d conveyed to her? The lone ideal that stuck and gave her courage now was, if she wanted to be given everything, she’d have to give everything up to him first. She was so ready to do that but…
“You’re sure about this?” Jo asked Lacy as she eyed her outfit in the full-length mirror. The worn jeans with an elegant white blouse left untucked was topped off with a white satin halter corset that wrapped around her torso so tight, coming up under her breasts, that she could barely breathe. “It makes me look like I’ve got double Ds.”
“I know. Clever little design, isn’t it? Hey, if Ted doesn’t rip it off you tonight, do you think I can borrow it sometime?”
“Sure because I highly doubt he’s going to do that. He probably won’t even speak to me.”
“That’s why you have to be bold.”
Jo was just swiping the lip-gloss wand across her bottom lip and paused to eye her friend in the mirror. “I think your idea of bold is illegal.”
“You think that would bother guys like them?”
Jo rubbed her lips together and smoothed a hand through her hair. She critically eyed her appearance. Lacy had done a beautiful job with her makeup. Her eyes were a dark smoky gray, and the way she’d outlined over and under the lids gave Jo more of an exotic look than usual.
“I know it wouldn’t bother him. Are you going to wish me luck?”
Lacy gave her a loose hug. “Don’t want to mess with perfection. You’re going to do great. I know it.”
“Thanks. Hey, what about you? You promise you’re going to dump Joe tonight. No more slipping no matter what he asks you to do to him, okay?”
“You got it, boss.” They walked out to the car and Lacy gave her a mock salute as she slid in, adding, “Everything’s going to be fine. You’ll do just great.”
But half an hour later, when Jo stood at the door to the green room in the club and heard the laughing and whistles, she wasn’t so sure. It sounded like Ted was in there enjoying himself with some women.
And when the door swung open her heart sank.
