by E. C. Towers
Linda stayed silent. He made his point, and, of course, had to add in the little comment about the cash she'd long ago stolen from him. That was it. That was the unfinished business he teased her about.
She shook her head and laughed, “Of course.”
“Of course?”
“Of course, you want your money. You want your dirty $50,000, the backpack that you and your 'bad ass' drug dealers were too much of a pussy to get yourselves. That's why you sent in a stupid college girl and a child to do your dirty work?”
Her anger and resentments came flooding back when she thought about the kind of danger he and his cohorts had put other innocent people through to get their dealings done.
“I'll pay you back, you little coward, if that's what you want. I will pay you back. As soon as you get me out of this mess, you can have your $50,000 back.”
“In tens and twenties, please,” he smiled.
“Fuck you, Derek,” Linda spat.
“You shouldn't really be that rude to someone who's going to lend you some money, even after you stole from them. I think, in order not to make this awkward, I insist you just stay with me. Taking more money from me would be too like a teenager receiving an allowance from her father, no?"
“Lend me some money, I'll pay you back everything I owe you.”
“Why are you so scared to stay with me, Linda?”
“I'm not scared. I'm just being cautious.”
“Cautious? You're talking like I'm some kind of criminal, instead of your ex-boyfriend.”
She stared at him indifferently, because Linda knew full well what would happen, or what he would try and make happen if she stayed under his roof. Derek still gazed at her with a hunger that was all too familiar. He would try something, and then that's when things would become impossible between them. Linda needed to keep their relationship professional if he was going to be of any use to her.
“Derek... you and me under the same roof? I wouldn't get a moment's sleep wondering if you were about to slink into my room for a quickie.”
He laughed because it was true. She had nailed that one. Linda was irresistible, and when it came to her, he had no self-control.
Or, at least, he didn't until now.
“You think you're the only one that's changed after 20 years? I have news for you, Linda. I'm married.”
Linda was stunned. The Derek she knew would have never gotten married. He was one of the most loyal boyfriends Linda had ever had, but he had clearly felt that a marriage certificate was akin to a buckled leash around his neck, and he found it downright offensive. He was a man, and he had enough self-control to be loyal to the women he loved. He didn't need a leash to stay faithful to his woman.
“You're lying,” she smirked.
“Nope. I'm a happily married man,” he smiled widely, with a seemingly content look on his face. Derek looked genuinely pleased to say the words to her.
“Congratulations,” she answered after a pause, genuinely happy for him though flabbergasted. Whatever woman brought this kind of reaction out of Derek was a special woman, indeed. Practically a super-hero in her eyes, she mused.
“Thank you. She's great. Her name is Dalila. If already explained to her the circumstances with you I presumed, and she’s agreed that you should stay with us. We have a very private villa with a guesthouse in the back. We'll be more like neighbors than roommates.”
Derek stood up and held out his arm, “Shall we?”
Linda stood up and reluctantly took his extended arm, walking with him back onto the street where a black Lincoln sedan was waiting. She smiled at the cliché of it all, the drug kingpin and the obligatory, tinted out Lincoln sedan.
He proudly smiled, feeling that Linda was admiring his car.
“I know. She's a beauty, isn't she?”
“Oh yeah, she's definitely a beauty.”
She stepped ahead of him and grabbed the passenger door before his chauffeur could get to the handle, letting her sit down inside. Coming in from the heat and humidity to the dry, air-conditioned chill in the car suddenly triggered her claustrophobia. Linda felt oddly trapped, even though she had voluntarily, almost defiantly, let herself into the vehicle. Now, she wanted badly to get out, but Derek climbed inside to settle next to her. She sat there and hoped this feeling wasn't also a premonition of how the rest of her days in Mexico would be like.
5
His Girl
20 Years Ago
Linda stepped off the plane into a sudden gush of hot heat that blew her hair back. She was here! She was finally here!
Linda had never thought she would do anything like this. When she first applied to colleges, Linda made sure they were all located in her home state, and now she was studying and volunteering in another country. She felt so worldly to step on the foreign ground, so grown up and ready to break out of her comfort zone. Mexico was going to be the experience of a lifetime; she felt it in her bones. What would happen from this point on was going to change her as a person, she thought. It was a huge expectation coming from such a small-town girl, but she couldn't help it.
Linda's schedule for the first two months consisted of going to school, volunteering after school, going out to the local bars and getting acquainted with the regulars. It was a whirlwind of activities and events and tours. Mexico had an energy that she had never felt before; a way of life she had never seen, and it was so different from any of her past experiences. She practically reveled in it.
She decided upon one particular walking tour of old Puerto Vallarta in an attempt to improve their knowledge of Mexico and its quickly spoken language. As the tour group crossed the street, Linda remained on the sideway, caught up in conversation with a Canadian girl who spoke very fluent Spanish. Surprised by yells from the group to catch their attention, Linda ran out into the street to the sounds of rubber screeching.
She gasped and jumped out of the way of a black Camero skidded to a halt. The driver jumped out within seconds to assault her with a barrage of insults, a jibberish of Spanish that truly frightened Linda. He was like a man possessed, speaking in tongues. But as he moved closer to her, he quieted down until he eventually just stopped speaking. The strange man stared at her for what seemed like ages until Linda broke the silence.
“I'm sorry. I mean, los ain two.”
He grimaced at her horrible Spanish.
“It's pronounced lo siento.”
“Right, yeah. That,” Linda coyly smiled, stepping back onto the curb and watching from her side eye while he slowly made his way back to his car.
Before Derek sat back inside, he raised his voice again to her, “What's your name?”
“Linda. How do you say your name?”
“...Derek.”
He flashed the most handsome smile she’d every seen, and her knees visibly buckled. He took notice and smiled even wider, flashing his dimples.
“Be more careful, Linda! I would have hated to run over such a beautiful girl.”
He slipped back inside his car and enjoyed the sight of her as he drove off.
After that day, Linda would daydream during class about the handsome stranger that almost ran over her with his car. She imagined running her fingers through his full, dark colored hair with its cute, just-got-out-of-bed look that was clearly manipulated and fake, but still looked so good. She tried to imagine how his lips would feel on her own. She had this dream more than once, and eventually, she would snap out of her daydream, scrambling to figure out what the teacher had asked. You don't even know him, she thought. You're daydreaming about some guy you're never going see again!
But see him again, she did.
A few weeks later, after her volunteer shift ended at hospital nurse station, she and a friend found themselves in a bar across the street to have some drinks and fresh tortilla chips with salsa. It had become their Wednesday routine.
“LINDA! CARRIE! I'll have your drinks right up, girls!”
They both smiled at Joey, who rushed back t
o the bar to get their drinks. His real name was José, but he insisted the girls call him “Joey.”
"You know, like the "Friends" show!" he joyfully explained to them on their first day in his bar.
He gave them their first round of drinks for free, and this day was no exception. They had settled into their booth before Joey came along with their usuals.
“Tequila Sunrise for you,” he smiled, proudly placing a frosted mug of watery orange liquid in front of Carrie. “And a Corona with a lime for you.”
He accented his service to let Linda know he appreciated her simple tastes for beer.
“You know some of these girls... drink the stuff that looks like Crayons!” His English was halting and oddly timed, struggling to find the words that carried his true meaning.
Joey had become a surrogate father to both of them, ensuring they got home safe after the bar, calling them a taxi and keeping the creepers in check. As Joey walked back to the kitchen to get their chips and salsa, the handsome driver was suddenly standing in front of her. She had to blink her eyes twice to make sure that the man she had been daydreaming of was now standing before her again. She blushed painfully and looked away from him as if he would somehow know about the naughty thoughts she kept about wildly fucking him in his car.
“Hey... hi. Remember me?”
That smile, again: so mesmerizing with its perfect white teeth and deep golden skin. Oh, I remember you, she wanted to say. I've only been thinking about you from the moment you told me I was beautiful.
"Um..I think so?” she answered, feigning ignorance to attempt a casual appearance.
“I'm Derek. The guy who almost ran over you a few days ago?”
9 days, 18 hours and 53 minutes ago, she thought.
"Oh, right! Derek. I remember now. You did almost run over me," Linda laughed, pretending to remember suddenly the moment. "I was stupid; I didn't look before I crossed the street. Thank God you were paying attention."
She laughed stupidly but immediately stopped when she realized that he was still standing there. Invite him to sit down, you idiot, she scolded herself.
“I was paying attention, all right," he finished off his drink and raised his empty glass to Joey, who hurried to make him another.
“You wanna sit down?” Linda scooted over to her friend, making room in the semi-circular booth for Derek to join them.
“Why, yes, I would love to sit down, Linda.”
He remembered her name. She broke out in goose bumps as his scruffy forearm grazed hers. Derek never took his eyes off of her as fell beside her. Normally, Linda would have felt very uncomfortable being stared at for so long, but she was staring back as intensely, and she loved the feeling. Her eyes had been thirsting to see him again, and now she enjoyed gulp-fulls of his beautiful face.
Joey arrived at their table with Derek's second glass.
“Can you keep the drinks coming, José?” He extended his hand towards Joey and out popped a tightly folded, undisclosed amount of bills that Joey took with ease; a smooth little dance that they had clearly enjoyed before.
“Yes, sir. No problem, sir.”
“You don't have to do that, you know. We can pay for our own drinks,” Linda informed him with a playful side-eye before taking a swig of her beer.
She tried to act as casually as she could, but inside she was a bundle of nerves and tingling, secretly relieved he had offered to pay for the drinks, as she needed all the beer she could get. Part of her was embarrassed for acting like she was in middle school with a crush, but another part of her was anxious, excited to get to know this gorgeous man and to be with him. She had never felt such an instantaneous sexual attraction to anyone in her life. It was an unusual sensation, but she knew at that moment that she had to have him.
The drinks kept flowing all night; things got a little louder, and laughs became boisterous as Linda and Carrie swapped stories with Derek about bad drunken nights. Derek was clearly smitten, and uncharacteristically let himself get buzzed. It felt good to laugh, and it felt good to look at her, to see her open her mouth wide and guffaw at her own jokes. Linda laughed a little too loudly, suggesting to him that this was a girl who didn't care about what other people thought. She laughed from her gut, and it was rich like a man's. Seeing a girl this young and this comfortable in her own skin was for Derek a glimpse into the amazing woman she was going to become. He was positively beaming.
When they had enjoyed their fill, Derek hailed a taxi for the girls so they could get home safely. As the car pulled up in front of the bar, Derek opened the door for the girls so they could sit down inside.
“Wait,” Linda stopped him. “What about you? Don't you need a ride?” Linda didn't want to see him go just yet and was disappointed at the thought that they couldn't at least get a few more minutes together in the cab.
"No, my dear, I live right by here. I can walk." He talked to her through the open window, their faces a little too close to each other. Linda could smell the Scotch on his breath as he bid her farewell.
“Good night,” she said with a sigh of regretful disappointment.
Derek stood gazing at the taxi as it drove off with the most amazing woman he had ever met. As the taillights disappeared over the hill, he realized that he hadn't asked for her number or address; absolutely nothing, in fact.
“Estupido!” he muttered to himself while running toward the taxi, knowing full well he wasn't going to catch up. A few moments later, after running uphill towards the bridge, he stopped, clearly defeated, as his limbs felt the strength of his intoxication. Just as he turned to walk back towards the bar, he heard fast footsteps coming toward him. Derek saw movement coming from the other side of the hill. Was it someone running? As the person got closer and ran over the hump, he saw that it was the girl, jogging towards him.
She stopped a few feet in front of him.
“Hi...” Linda said in between her panting as she tried to catch her breath. Linda had taken off her heels and ran barefoot.
“That's a great way to cut your feet right open and catch a deadly disease," he smirked, beyond thrilled that she had come back for him.
She stared playfully with a sly smile on her face.
“Hi,” he smiled. “So, what's going on? It's really late, shouldn't you go home and go to bed?” he asked.
“Yeah, it is late and I… I don't want to go home, but…” Linda paused for effect, “I do want to go to bed.” It was more forward a statement than she had ever imagined announcing to anyone. She realized how cheesy she sounded but couldn't help it; that's how she felt. Dizzy and cheesy from this cliché she was feeling. Love at first sight? So this is what they were talking about.
They stared at each other in silence for a moment. Derek was the first to break it by leaning over to kiss her gently on the lips. It was a small kiss, but he stayed within inches of her, letting his lips linger close to hers, his hot breath inviting her to respond to him with a kiss of her own. Linda answered with much more than a peck, licking his bottom lip as she had wanted to all night. She suckled on them, letting her tongue slowly slip in and discover his tongue. Derek closed his eyes and let his sense of touch enhance in the willed darkness. Derek savored and tasted her tongue like a decadent dessert. He ran his hands up the back of her taut thighs and grabbed her buttocks gently pulling her in closer. The sensation pulled her mind back to the place where they stood, though she could not stop her hands from exploring his broad, hot chest, wrapping her arms around his neck to lock the embrace.
“Let's go,” he whispered.
Derek took her hand, and they moved back together, holding hands in the night. The only sounds were their feet slapping on the pavement and light breathing as they glanced at each other, trying to stay at the same pace. Derek would speed up ahead of her, and Linda would move to catch up with him before speeding up herself to incite his response. It was an odd kind of foreplay, but exciting nonetheless.
They arrived at his house, which was modest by U.S. st
andards, but almost palatial by his neighborhood's standards. The entire property was covered with tall hedges, shielding the view of the house from the street. They walked onto the property, following the semicircular driveway up to the steps. It was extra dark with all the vegetation that surrounded them; the only thing she could see was the moonlight reflecting off his cheek as he crouched down to see the keyhole better. After unlocking the front door, Derek scooped her up, and Linda wrapped her smooth legs around his waist, kissing him as he walked them to his bedroom up the stairs.
Linda felt the light scruff of his cheek against her lips and neck, with sweet kisses now that gave her a sense of his controlled passion. There was no doubt that she was in the hands of a very experienced man. There was no awkward fumbling she had experienced with college guys. His movements were confident; his kisses, his hands, all intentional, strong and deliberate. The whole felt intent on pleasuring her, even as his movements only heightened his lust for her.
The scent of his clean, sun-dried sweat with a hint of mint drove her insane. Linda began taking off her summer dress as soon as he put her on the bed, wanting nothing between her skin and his. Derek followed suit and unbuttoned his shirt, albeit slowly for her benefit. She was mesmerized as he revealed his lean swimmer's body. His muscular chest and lower abs were tan with a slight bit of soft hair. She ran her hands down his torso, following his happy trail onto the waistband of his jeans where she slipped a few fingers inside so to pull him in a little closer.
Derek put his arms out to hover over her, giving her a good view of his broad shoulders, casting their shadow over her. Linda ran her hands over the tight muscles of his arms, savoring the hard sculpture of each bump and ridge. He lowered his body onto her's, and when they were finally skin to skin, the intense heat between their bodies seared them together as they continued their playful kisses.
Derek rolled onto his back and put Linda on top of him, slipping her dress completely off. In turn, she unbuttoned his jeans and pulled them to the floor. Both were finally naked, pressed into one another in a desperate embrace. Derek became hard to feel the swells of her breasts against his chest, and he reached to pull them to his lips. The hot wetness of his lips sent a burning shiver through her, and Linda pulled back gently to free herself, playing with the fluid bounce of her chest to tease him. Inciting an aggressive reaction, Derek cupped his rough hands over her ass and grabbed a handful of the flesh so forcefully that she moaned and could not stop herself from writhing on top of him. His cock was hard as a rock and hot as an iron, pressed against the inside of her leg. She had to stop herself from grabbing it and sliding him deeply inside her. Instead, she reached down and fondled the tip with her fingertips, fluttering them up and down the shaft, causing Derek to jolt with pleasure. She grinded her ass into his thighs as he leaned back, thrusting his cock into her hand to feel the immense pleasure, now slippery from droplets of pre-cum. The movement almost brought him to climax, but Derek sat up to delay his enthusiasm, letting a kiss distract her ambitions, as his lips fit with hers like a perfect puzzle piece. He her cupped her face in his hands, letting his tongue slowly kiss her, gently pushing himself in and out of her grasp. She moaned as he buried his face in her neck and gently bit the tender flesh. She was wet and desperate for his cock to be inside her.
