by Jessica Kile
“You really need to quit doing that,” Drew stated. He rested both of his hands on either side of her on the counter. “You tempt me too much.”
His eyes mesmerized her, and took her breath away. It was impossible not to move to meet his mouth. Her eyes drifted shut at the gentle touch of his lips on hers. Her legs pulled him in closer, as he deepened the kiss causing a sigh to escape.
Reality came back into sharp focus when her cell phone buzzed with a new message.
Simultaneously they reached for the phone. Drew won, and tried to shield the phone from her sight.
It was too late. She saw the message.
You are mine! I own you!
“Damn it,” Drew cursed. In a split second her phone was flying across the room, and smashing into the wall.
Lana felt her mouth hanging open in disbelief. She'd never seen him this angry; he was always so calm.
Well Hell.
Now she needed a new phone.
“I’ll buy you a new one,” he promised. “And I’m changing your number.”
Oh, right! Oops.
She could've saved her phone’s life had she remember to go and change her number. As if that would really stop Shawn. If he had found out her phone number, evidently they had a common friend. Chances were he knew where she lived as well.
Oh, God! He had to know where she lived. He was out there watching. How else could he know about Drew? A cold shiver of fear ran through her body at the thought.
“If it goes beyond text messages I will be contacting my dad,” he warned her.
She wrapped her arms around herself attempting to chase the chill away.
“Hey,” he said, his hand cupping her cheek. “I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”
Deep down she wanted to believe him, to trust he could protect her.
He sighed. “I hate sending you out by yourself. Are you sure you don’t want me to drive you?”
She wanted him to drive her, and stay there the whole day, but she had to prove she was strong. Sometimes having a point to make really sucked.
Tracie was all sunshine and rainbows when Lana walked into the coffee shop an hour later.
“Oh, my god, Lana,” she squealed. “I know I’m not normally into the dominating kind, but with him it’s kind of hot.”
Oh my-lands.
How could anyone want to let one person have that much control? Just the thought gave Lana the shivers and not the good kind.
Lana concentrated on wiping down the tables. Did it really matter what she thought? Tracie was the one who would have to deal with the guy if she continued to see him. If Lana played her cards right she would never have to be around him. It’s not as if she spent a lot of time outside of work with Tracie.
“We’re going out again this weekend,” Tracie said in an almost sing song voice.
“That’s good,” Lana said, not really paying attention to what Tracie was talking about.
A man in a black hoodie with the hood pulled up was watching them through the window. Was it Shawn? Did he know where she worked? Panic clawed at her throat.
Tracie moved over to look out the window. “What’s got you cleaning that same table again?” A smile broke out on her face and she ran to the door. “I’ll be right back!”
A sigh of relief escaped from Lana as she watched Tracie race across the parking lot and toss her arms around the neck of the guy. It had to be the guy she was dating.
Lana was happy for Tracie. She was a little freaked out by the fact that her friend was into being a submissive, but thought it was kind of funny. Tracie wasn't known for taking shit from anyone, stranger things have happened.
By the time Lana was able to get out of there for the night, she was dragging. Lack of sleep was catching up with her. All she wanted to do was crawl into bed, preferably in Drew’s arms, and sleep.
Her car was parked under one of the three parking lights. She immediately noticed the word scratched into the driver’s side door.
MINE
Breathing became impossible as she scanned the empty parking lot. He had been here! Tremors began to take over her body. Oh God! He had been right outside of the building. Needing to get to Drew, all thoughts of destroying fingerprints fled from her mind. She was in her car and heading to the apartment. Red lights and stop signs were ignored.
Chapter 11
It took forever for Drew to answer her constant pounding on his door. Not paying any attention to the fact that he had come to the door in a towel Lana launched herself at him, wrapping her arms around his neck.
His arms came around her holding her close to the warmth of his body. At any other time she would've taken the time to enjoy him in all of his almost completely naked glory. Now all she wanted was the comfort and safety he provided.
“I’m happy to see you too,” he murmured, dropping a kiss on top of her head.
“He was there,” she announced. Without taking a breath she added, “I didn’t see him, but he was there.”
“Whoa, whoa,” he said, pulling back and looking down at her. “Honey, take a breath and calm down. Then slowly tell me what’s going on.”
She let her forehead fall against his shoulder taking even breaths. He smelt like the ocean. Once she was calmer, she looked back up at him.
“Shawn knows where I work,” she informed him. She pulled away to walk around the room, too nervous to stand still. “I didn’t see him, but I know he was there.”
“Wait.” Drew shut the door, leaned back against it, and crossed his arms over his naked chest. “If you didn’t see him how do you know he was there?”
Lana took another calming breath. Damn this was too much stress. “Because when I went out to my car to come home I saw that he keyed my car.”
His eyes widened. “Someone keyed your car and you didn’t bother to call me?”
“I couldn’t call you because someone broke my phone this morning.”
“Are you okay?” he asked, ignoring her last comment.
Mentally and physically exhausted, she collapsed onto the couch. “Physically, I’m fine.”
“You need to report this,” he told her. She watched him pace the floor, shoving his hands through his hair. Obviously, he had forgotten that he was half naked. “This isn’t just about text messages anymore. He keyed your car. He’s here in town.”
She shivered rubbing her hands over both arms. “I feel like I’m living a nightmare.”
The fierceness left Drew’s eyes, as he held his arms out to her. “Come here.”
A few steps and she was wrapped in his arms. Part of her brain registered she should not be this close to him, at the moment. Her body was too busy noticing every hard muscle she touched. Hands busied themselves learning every line and contour of his abs and chest. Even now at such a terrifying time she could not help but be in awe of the wonder that was Drew.
“I don’t want to be alone tonight,” she sighed. “I know Ricky will be there, but it’s not the same.”
He pulled her closer against his body, which wasn't trying to hide his reaction to her. “I’m not letting you out of my sight tonight.”
Her breath caught and her body shivered at the thought of being pressed against his body all night. She swallowed as her mind got lost in the land of dirty thoughts. Thoughts that just a month ago would have her running away.
His body tensed before he pulled away from her. “Let me go put some clothes on and then we’ll call and report it.”
Darn.
She was kind of hoping he was planning on running around like that for the rest of the night. She could've dealt with that.
A few minutes later, Drew came out wearing a pair of gym shorts without a shirt. She could definitely get on board with that.
It took a couple seconds for Lana to realize he was on his cell phone.
“No, it’s not my car.” He was pacing in front of the television while listening to the person on the other end. “Like I told you. My girlfri
end went to leave work, and saw someone keyed her car.”
Girlfriend. The term should set off a million different warning bells. She felt calm and relieved to know what she was to him.
“OK, thanks.” He ended the call, and his phone onto the coffee table. “He’s going to stop by and take an official report.”
“Who?” Lana asked from her stretched out position on the couch.
Drew raised his arms above his head and stretched. “My dad.”
She got hung up on the glorious sight of those amazing abs and almost missed what he said. Almost.
Oh God! No. Absolutely not. There was no way in hell that she was going to let his father know about her past. Nobody could make her give up those details to that man. She'd just have to learn to live with Shawn stalking her.
The clothing catalog she'd been looking at dropped to her chest. “What do you mean your dad is coming to take a report?”
“I told you he’s a cop,” he reminded her, lowering his arms back to his side.
“But he’s your dad,” she said.
“And since it wasn't my car, he can be on the case.” Drew moved to the couch, raised her legs up, sat down and lowering her legs across his. “We need someone we trust on this case. I trust him.”
“He’s your dad. I don’t want him to know about Shawn.”
“Honey, I don’t want just any cop handling this.” His hands massaging her feet felt amazing.
“Great,” she muttered. “I’m sure he’ll be thrilled to know you’re dating a girl who is being stalked by her rapist.”
He pulled on her little toe through her Halloween socks. “He’s not going to judge you because of your past. How many times do I have to tell you it wasn't your fault? You told him no. He should have accepted no for an answer.”
It seemed like only minutes before Drew’s dad knocked on the door.
This man seemed like a man who would take no shit from anyone. Without showing an ounce of emotion, he demanded to see all of the text messages. He ridiculed his son upon finding out the phone had been destroyed. The last thing he did before he left was take a picture of the message on her car door.
The whole meeting was just odd. Father and son seemed to be at odds. Hell, he just wanted the facts from Lana. Apparently social skills weren't a job requirement.
Lana was left with no answers. There was no actual proof that the messages were from Shawn. The coffee shop didn't have cameras in their parking lot, making it difficult to prove that it had been Shawn who had vandalized her car. Without solid proof the detective’s hands were tide.
The next day they traveled twenty minutes outside of town to Drew’s family farm. It wasn't a spend -time- with -the -cows visit. There was a shooting range located in one of the fields. Drew was determined she learn how to defend herself.
Lana had never held a real life gun in her hands. She wasn't even sure if her parents owned a gun, if they did they'd never shown it to her. What need did a banker have for a gun?
She wasn't too thrilled with having the hand gun in her possession now.
Her back was pressed against Drew’s front, arms stretched out aiming for the target. The gun felt heavy. Powerful.
The first shot sent her head, unprepared, back into Drew’s chin. She was a little more prepared for the recoil with the next four shots. It wasn't so bad. If the situation presented itself she could fire the weapon. Would she like it? No. Could she live with herself if she had to actually shoot someone? Probably not. Did she feel safer? Hell yeah.
“Let’s see how you did,” Drew suggested, as he took the gun.
Lana followed him up the path to the target. Two of the shots hadn't even landed on the paper. One shot was centered in the figure’s foot. Another, where his nose should've been. The last one would've been painful.
“You took out his balls,” Drew stated in astonishment.
“Well, you didn’t say I had to shoot at the head,” she defended herself. “You said to stop the guy.”
He shook his head wincing. “Getting shot there will definitely bring a man to his knees.”
*************************
Hidden in the trees, a man stood watching the couple. Damn! She was hot wielding that weapon. The bitch couldn't shoot to save her ass.
Not such a bad thing in this case.
Rage filled him as he watched the man wrap her in his arms, grabbing a hand full of her ass. She didn't push him away. She seemed to encourage his advances, standing on tip toes to meet his seeking lips.
Who did this man think he was? Lana did not belong to him!
***********************
A twig in the woods snapped, dead leaves crunched. Something bigger than a squirrel was moving.
“Did you hear that?” Lana asked, scanning the wood line. She felt as if they were being watched.
Nothing was there.
Drew turned his head to search the same area. “Probably just a deer.”
“Yeah, I guess.”
They began the walk back to his four wheeler. His hand was in the back pocket of her jeans rubbing her ass with each step they took.
Lana kept her eyes on the tree line until they were back at his truck.
Chapter 12
That weekend Drew came by with a new cell phone. “Only give this number to your parents, Ricky, and Tracie.”
Lana rolled her eyes. “They're the only ones I gave it to before.”
“It’s registered under my name,” he informed her. “There’s no way an outsider can track it to you.”
The light bulb in her head clicked. “So if he messages again we’ll know someone gave him my number?”
He leaned in and took a bite out of the candy bar she was holding. “Then all we’ll have to do is figure out who gave the number to who.”
“My parents are the only ones who Shawn could talk to,” she pointed out, pulling her candy bar away from him.
Drew grabbed a bottle of water out of the fridge. There wasn't a need to ask for anything at this stage in their relationship. “This is the day of social media, honey, anybody can get in contact with anybody they want. Not to mention your last number was registered under your name.”
Lana took a bite out of her candy bar, savoring the milk chocolate and oozing caramel. Just the thought of her parents unknowingly giving her rapist information about her unnerved her. How else could Shawn know where she was?
“I put Chris’s number, both my mom’s house, and my dad’s cell in that phone,” he told her. “I have to go to a dinner and won’t be back tonight. If anything happens you call Chris.”
Call Chris? No way!
Drew held a hand up. “No arguments. I’m going to be forty minutes away at my grandma’s house. Dad's thirty minutes away if he's even at the house.”
She sighed. “Fine, but I don’t like this at all.”
“I don’t like it either,” he agreed. “I don’t like leaving you here but it’s my grandma’s birthday.”
The fact that she was slightly hurt that she had not been invited was insane. Nobody invites their brand new girlfriend to grandma’s birthday party. Hell, she hadn't even gone to her own grandma’s birthday dinner.
Snap out of it, girl.
“Don’t look at me like that,” he demanded, looping a finger in her belt loop pulling her to him. “I already feel bad enough.”
Lana shook her head to clear her thoughts. “I’ll be fine. I have a ton of homework and I think Ricky is actually planning on staying home tonight.” Up on tiptoes, she gave him a peck on the lips. “Don’t worry about me.”
Liar.
Yeah, Ricky said he was going to be home all weekend for once. Lord knows she had enough homework to keep her locked in her room all weekend as well. Without Drew being down the hall the threat seemed closer. No way was she going to let Shawn keep Drew from his grandma. She'd never be able to live with herself. The only option was to keep her fears hidden.
Sliding his hands around
her waist he pulled her even closer. “I want you all to myself when I get back.”
Mind going straight to the gutter, she shivered a little. All sort of naughty things came to mind. Sigh.
All of that would have to wait. One day she would get to feel him against her body with nothing between them, but it would not be today.
The kiss was slow, teasing, and tempting. Just plain hot. Breathing became almost impossible and her body began to hum a slow tune of arousal. It was amazing how this man could make her forget the terror of her past and take away all worries of the present.
It ended as fast as it had began, leaving her all kinds of flustered. Damn her body’s response to this man. How could one’s mind and body be at such odds? Her body was ready to strip them both down right here. Her mind was busy listing the reasons why this was a bad idea. Visions of Shawn were forefront. Practically looking her in the eye. Just once she wanted to be able to listen to what her body wanted.
Drew groaned. “Maybe you could come with me.”
There was the invitation that she'd been waiting for. Too bad she couldn't bring herself to accept. He didn't really want her to go for the right reasons. It was too soon to meet his family. Even she felt that they would be rushing things, if they took that step. Clearly, he was thinking with the head that was not attached to his shoulders.
She let her hand trail down his chest, past his stomach and grabbed his belt in her fist pulling his lower half tight against her. “I’ll be here waiting.”
Later that evening Lana was kicking herself for not going with Drew. What was she supposed to do all weekend? He wouldn't be back until Sunday evening. The dinner was tonight but he had promised to stay and fix some things around his grandmother’s house. It was noble really.
Having finished all of her major homework, Lana stared out the window down to the busy street. Shawn was out there somewhere. Watching. Waiting.
It would be easy to give into the fear and stay home where he couldn't get to her. If she did he would be taking even more of her life than he had already taken away. Enough was enough. She refused to be a victim.
