I’m not a good guy.
I’d do whatever I had to do to survive and get what I want.
You really want to help her, don’t you?
John Gallo?
He had handled Larazo as if he were nothing, and it had taken him no time at all to knock him unconscious.
How long would it have taken, what terrible punishment would he have handed out, to force Larazo to actually go into that police station and confess?
And would he have done it if she hadn’t said that she wanted to help Rosa any way she could?
If not, then his act bound her to him in a dark, breathless intimacy.
It was all guesswork. John Gallo might not have been involved at all.
She got to her feet and started up the flights of stairs. She’d probably be able to go straight to bed. She doubted if Sandra would be home. She spent the nights with “friends” most of the time. She only showed up at the apartment once or twice a week.
No, she couldn’t go to bed yet. She hadn’t done her geometry. It seemed forever ago that she’d tossed that book in her book bag and taken off from the apartment. She’d have to do her homework before she could go to sleep.
Just as well. She was still wide-awake. She didn’t want to lie awake in her bed. She wouldn’t mind if she lay there and thought about Rosa and the baby.
But that wasn’t what she’d be thinking about. She’d be remembering how she’d felt when John Gallo had touched her.
And she’d be remembering that last glimpse of him before the elevator closed …
* * *
IT WAS FIVE TO ELEVEN THE next evening when John Gallo walked into Mac’s Diner, where she worked.
“Hi.” He stood at the counter. “You get off in five minutes, don’t you?”
She tensed, then tried to say casually, “Fifteen, I have to do the setup for tomorrow.” She wiped the counter with her cloth. “What are you doing here?”
“It looks like rain. I thought I’d take you home.”
She shook her head. “I can take the bus.”
“I know what you can do.” He smiled. “And I know what I want you to do. But what are you going to do, Eve? Why should you take a bus when we’re both going to the same place?”
Because she didn’t know if she wanted to get in a car with him. Just standing here a few feet away, she was too physically aware of him. “I’m not sugar. I won’t melt in a little rain.”
He chuckled. “No, you’re not sugar sweet. That’s what I like about you. You strike sparks. I can’t forget how you tackled Larazo.” His smile faded. “But you should have had a weapon. You weren’t strong enough to handle him.”
“Maybe I should ask your uncle to give me lessons.”
“That’s a thought. Or maybe I can teach you.” Then he shook his head. “No, lots of body contact. It wouldn’t work. I’d forget what I was doing.”
And so might she. Why did every reference come back to the physical? No, she shouldn’t let him take her home.
He was studying her face. “Take a chance. I’m not going to do anything you don’t want me to do. We’ll talk.” He thought about it. “Maybe.” Then he grinned. “It’s hard to be honest when I’m trying my best to convince you I’m no threat.”
He couldn’t convince her. He was a threat to her. No, it was her own emotions that were the threat.
“You have to leave. I have to finish my shift.”
He didn’t speak for a moment. “I’ll wait for you outside. I’m parked across the street. Old beat-up tan Chevy. It’s not pretty, but it’s transportation.” He didn’t wait for her to answer as he strode toward the door. “And it will keep the rain off you.”
He was gone before she could reply.
She stared after him, her hand clenched on the cloth.
“Who is that?” Teresa Maddel had come out of the kitchen and was standing, gazing out the window at John Gallo as he ran across the street. “Hot, very hot, Eve.” She made a mocking gesture of fanning herself. “I don’t think you can handle him. You should leave him to me.”
Eve didn’t think she could handle him, either. Just those few minutes had made her feel uncertain.
“His name is John Gallo.” She began to fill up the saltshaker. “And you’re welcome to him.”
“I’ll take him.” Teresa was only half-kidding. “You don’t run across sexy guys like that every day of the week. Introduce me the next time he comes in.” She wandered back toward the kitchen. “And I’ll do the rest.”
Yes, Teresa would give him anything he wanted and ask for more. She was almost twenty, and some of the stories she told Eve were very graphic. Eve had a mental image of a naked Teresa moving beneath him and Gallo driving hard, fast, and—
Only the naked girl had suddenly become Eve, not Teresa. And the muscles of her stomach were tensing as he entered her and—
Don’t think of it.
Ready to perform.
She had thought that about John Gallo at the hospital. Tight, sensual, ready to perform.
She had spilled the salt. Her hand was shaking.
Stupid. She wasn’t this weak. It was only a crazy physical yen. She should be able to control it.
But Teresa had evidently experienced that same reaction and she was not going to control it. Maybe she had the right idea. Take any pleasure that came your way.
But she wasn’t like Teresa. She knew that sex had consequences that eventually caught up with you. Look at her mother, look at Rosa. She wouldn’t be caught in that trap.
She wasn’t that weak.
* * *
IT HAD STARTED TO RAIN when she left the restaurant.
The tan Chevy was parked across the street.
She stopped, staring at it.
John Gallo got out of the car and stood in the rain, holding the passenger door open for her. “Come on. Hurry.”
The rain was pouring down his face, and his shirt was already starting to cling to his body. He didn’t look as if he even felt it.
He smiled and repeated softly, “Hurry. I can’t wait.”
Neither could she. She was running across the street. “You’re an idiot.” She jumped into the car. “Look at you. You’re drenched.” She leaned back in the seat. “Now get in the car and drive me home.”
“Not such an idiot.” He was in the driver’s seat and starting the car. “I needed something to help you make up your mind.” He slanted a glance at her. “And I don’t melt either, Eve. At least not in the rain.”
“I should have left you standing there in the downpour,” Eve said. “And I will next time. Or I’ll send out Teresa, one of the girls I work with. She wants to meet you.”
“Not interested.” He smiled. “And you wouldn’t leave me out in the rain.”
“Why not?”
“I might rust. I’m going to be too valuable to you for you to take the chance. You’re going to like the way I move.”
“Stop it.” She drew a deep breath. “You said we could talk. This isn’t talk. This is some kind of game I don’t know how to play.”
“I know how to play it. And it’s all I can think about.” He stared straight ahead, watching the windshield wipers brush away the rain. “Okay. Talk. How is Manuel?”
“Fine. It’s as if last night never happened.” She paused. “What did you do to Rick Larazo?”
“Who said I did anything?”
“What did you do?”
He didn’t answer for a moment. “You don’t want to know. It took a little persuasion to make him see that confession was good for the soul.”
“Why did you do it?”
“It was easier for me to remove Rosa’s problem than it was for you to do it.” He paused. “And you told me you wanted it.”
“As if that would make a difference.”
“It made a difference. I wanted to please you.”
“Why?”
“Why do you think? Because I wanted you to please me. I thought there might be a return on the inv
estment.”
“You thought I’d screw you if you did that for Rosa?”
He sighed. “If you want to put it bluntly.”
“I do. I hate people who beat around the bush. And I didn’t tell you to go after Larazo.” She added grudgingly, “Though I might have done it if I’d thought it would work. He deserved to be punished.”
“Oh, he was.”
“But I wouldn’t screw you as some kind of reward. That would be nuts.”
“It wouldn’t if it turned out to be a mutual reward. I was just hoping to sway you a little in my direction.” He lifted his brow. “Are you swayed?”
“No.”
“Then I’ll have to keep on trying.” They had reached the housing development, and he pulled the car over to the curb across the street from the project. “I’ve only just begun.”
The rain was pounding on the roof of the car and enveloping them in a rhythmic sound that had its own intimacy.
Intimacy. That was what Eve had been trying to avoid, and all of a sudden it was there, surrounding her.
“Thanks for the lift.” She reached for the handle of the door. “Good night.”
“It’s still pouring. Stay a minute until it lets up.”
“I have to get to bed. I have school tomorrow.”
“No mother waiting anxiously for her little girl?”
“No.”
“You were all bent out of shape when I mentioned drugs. You took it personally. Is she the user?”
She didn’t answer directly. “I hate what they do to you.”
He nodded. “She’s the user. I don’t like them, either. My uncle was on prescription drugs for a while, and it turned him into another person. Does she make it rough on you?”
“You mean, does she beat me? No, she’s not like that even when she’s on the stuff. She just wants everything pretty, and it looks that way to her when she sees it through a veil of crack. She doesn’t see that everything is really falling to pieces around her.”
“Not a good life for you.”
“I manage,” she said tersely. “Keep your pity, I don’t need it.”
“I don’t pity you.” He smiled. “I wouldn’t let myself. It might get in the way of getting what I want. I told you that was my main objective.”
“Why?” She looked straight ahead. “Why me? I’m not drop-dead gorgeous. I’m not even particularly pretty.”
“No, you’re not.” His smile vanished. “You’re too thin, and your face doesn’t look like some movie star’s. But I don’t want to stop looking at it. Do you know what I thought when I first got a good look at you when you were sitting on those stairs? You burn, Eve. Your hair was shining more red than brown under those lights, and your whole being was focused on Rosa and her baby. You were so alive and intense, I felt as if I’d scorch my fingers if I touched you.” He added softly, “And I couldn’t wait to feel the burn.”
She was feeling that burn, with every breath she took. She swallowed and pulled her gaze away. “That’s crazy. I don’t want this. Why are you bothering? Why don’t you go screw Teresa or someone else? When you get down to it, isn’t one girl as good as another to a guy? That’s what I’ve always heard.”
“That’s what I’ve always heard, too.” His lips twisted. “Hell, that’s what I’ve always believed. Sex is sex. Why not take it wherever you can?”
“So?”
“But it’s not working right now. There’s some kind of wild chemistry going on between us. I’ve heard about that happening, but I thought it was a bunch of bull. But I felt it the minute I saw you, and I think you felt it, too. I don’t want anyone else. It has to be you, Eve.”
“No, it doesn’t. Not if I don’t want it.” She said shakily, “And I don’t. It would get in my way. My mother had me when she was fifteen. I’ve seen girls my own age having babies and being left to raise them by themselves. And then they’re stuck in a rut that they can never climb out of. That’s not going to happen to me.”
“I’d protect you. I don’t want kids, either. I’m going to basic training in four weeks. Do you think I want to leave a kid behind? I have to be on my own.”
She shook her head. “Why are we even talking about this?”
“You started it.” His hands clenched on the steering wheel. “And I’m glad you did. I wanted to have everything aboveboard. I don’t want to hurt you, Eve. We can take what we need without hurting each other. Let me show you.”
“No.” She jumped out of the car. It was still raining, and she was wet in seconds. “You won’t hurt me because I won’t let you.” She started across the street. “I take care of myself.”
“I’ll pick you up at work tomorrow night, Eve.”
“Haven’t you been listening to me?”
“Every word. And you’ve been listening to me. That means progress.” He started the car. “I’ll see you tomorrow night.”
She slammed the heavy door of the entrance behind her.
Close him out. Close out the thoughts his words had brought rushing to the surface.
She couldn’t do it.
Every word he’d said was still with her. She was wet and should have been chilled, but she felt as if she had a fever.
Yes, that was it. That was exactly what John Gallo was.
A fever that would leave her if she didn’t let it take over her mind as well as her body.
It was clear that he’d had a lot of experience in sexual encounters. His interest in her was probably fleeting and would go away soon. Then she would not have to deal with these bizarre and disturbing feelings again.
All she had to do was hold on.
* * *
“HELLO, EVE.” HE WALKED UP TO the counter at ten forty the next evening. “I came a little early. I thought I might need to do a little repair work.”
“Repair work?”
“Haven’t you been trying to tear down everything that I tried to do last night?” He chuckled. “Don’t answer.”
She didn’t intend to answer. “I don’t need a ride home. You might as well leave.”
He shook his head. “I’ll stick around. You might change your mind.”
“I won’t.”
“Let me help you fill up those saltshakers, Eve.” Teresa was suddenly beside her, her gaze fixed on John Gallo. “Hi, I’m Teresa Maddel. Are you a friend of Eve’s?”
“I’m trying to be.” He smiled at Teresa. “John Gallo. Nice to meet you, Teresa.”
Teresa’s smile was brilliant. “Me, too. You wouldn’t have any trouble being friends with me. Eve has other fish to fry. She’s so serious, she even spends her breaks doing homework. Can you imagine that?”
“I can imagine.” His gaze was on Eve. “I can imagine all kinds of things about her.”
Eve could feel that now-familiar heat moving through her. She abruptly turned away. “You two get to know each other. I’ll go clean the soda machine.” She disappeared into the kitchen, and she kept busy doing preps for the next twenty minutes. She was aware of Teresa’s laughter and John’s voice, but avoided looking at them. It was only when she saw John leaving the restaurant that she came back out front to finish the counter fill-ups.
“Thanks for giving me my chance with him.” Teresa’s gaze was on John moving across the street toward his Chevy. “Damn, he’s sexy. Will you look at that tight butt?”
Eve automatically glanced at John, then hastily averted her eyes. She didn’t need Teresa drawing her attention to anything about him. “Did you make any progress?”
“Maybe. I gave him my telephone number.” She was still staring at him as he got in the car. “Of course, he wouldn’t make a move on me since he was here to see you. He said he’d wait outside for you.”
“Why don’t you go out to the car and talk to him? It’s eleven now. Clock out, and I’ll finish your side work.”
Teresa’s brows rose. “Are you kidding? Are you trying to get rid of him?”
“Yes.”
Teresa stared at her in d
isbelief. “You’ve got to be crazy. I knew the minute I saw him that he was a good time walking. He could give a girl a really good ride.”
“Then go have your good time.” Eve didn’t look at her as she finished filling the pepper. “Like you said, I’m too serious for him.”
“Well, I’m not.” Teresa clocked out and was heading for the door. “Thanks, Eve.”
Eve put the cap on the shaker. Don’t look out the window and see whether Teresa had been welcomed by John. Of course, she would be. She was pretty and sexy and very willing. Eve had done the right thing. Soon she wouldn’t have to worry about—
“Eve.” It was Mr. Kimble, frowning as he called her from the kitchen. “Phone call for you. It’s your mother. I’ve told you all that there are rules about receiving calls here unless it is an emergency.”
“Sorry.” She moved quickly toward the phone on the wall. “You know I’ve never gotten one before, Mr. Kimble. There must be some mistake.”
He turned away. “See that it doesn’t happen again.”
“Yes, sir.” She picked up the phone. “Sandra, I can’t talk now. Why did you call me here?”
“He hurt me.” Sandra was sobbing. “I thought Jimmy was such a nice man. We had such a good time. But he hurt me. I’m bleeding, Eve.”
Bleeding?
Eve stiffened. “How did he hurt you, Sandra?”
“He slapped me and cut my lip. And then he punched me in the stomach. Why would he hurt me like that? It wasn’t as if I wasn’t going to let him—but a woman has to be treated with respect.”
“Where are you?”
“A hotel room at the Marriott.”
“Is he still there?”
“No, he said he was going to go out and find a dealer and score some heroin. He said I needed to be sweetened up a little.” She paused. “I’m scared of heroin, Eve. I take other stuff, but I’m scared of heroin.”
“Sandra, why are you calling me? Why don’t you just walk out of there?”
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