It had all been planned before he left Quebec, and the whole plan hinged on Jane trusting him, on Jane wanting to help him, on Jane caring about him. This Bryce was an unforeseen complication.
He must be a fairly new development in Jane’s life though, Etienne thought. He pulled out his phone and fired off a text. The answer was as expected. Very new it seems. I’ll have to work around him somehow.
Monday he’d snuck out of the apartment while Jane was at work and had wandered down to the care home to learn as much as he could. It had been very informative. Jane and Bryce, a human with a moderately athletic build and average features, had gone out for lunch and Etienne had followed at a distance not wanting to arouse Jane’s suspicions. This time he didn’t want her to know he was there.
It was sickening to watch and he was tempted to interrupt but he was supposed to be back at the apartment, so he just watched as they laughed together and Bryce put a hand over Jane’s. They weren’t holding hands walking back but they laughed and talked with intense familiarity.
The same thing had happened Tuesday and Wednesday. He couldn’t get close enough to hear what they were talking about and he couldn’t ask her about it. All he knew for sure was that she didn’t smile and laugh like that for him. Not anymore.
“Well, there’s still time to change that,” he said to the empty apartment.
* * *
“So, do you know how to cook anything besides kabobs?” Jane asked as they waited for the elevator to come down.
“Steak. Barbecue chicken. Baked potatoes. Anything with instructions on the packaging. Kabobs are just fancy and I’m trying to impress you. Is it working?”
“Maybe a little.” She wrapped her arms around his.
She’d been to his apartment less than half a dozen times, but she mostly knew her way around his kitchen now. While he grilled, she warmed up some vegetables. I’ll have to bring salad fixings next time, she thought while she waited for the microwave to ding. Her phone buzzed, a text from Etienne wondering where she was.
“At a friend’s for dinner,” she texted back and then turned her phone off. Whatever Etienne needed could wait a few hours.
They ate at the table, their conversation moving from talk of the upcoming federal election, to immigration, to the club shooting the month before.
“That was slightly darker than I intended,” he said, pushing his plate back. “I’m stuffed. I don’t know how you eat so much.”
“Blessed and cursed with a very high metabolism,” she said. She licked her fingers clean. “That was fantastic.”
He gathered the dishes and headed for the sink. “I guess you’ll be wanting a ride home.”
“I – uh – don’t have to go right away. Neither of us works tomorrow and with this family emergency hovering around, I could use a break. If you don’t mind. I don’t want to impose.” She thought of her phone. She did not want to talk to Etienne right now.
“Karl cancelled for tomorrow again so I don’t have to be up early.”
“Does he do that a lot?”
“No, not until this house. He’s renting out storage space in the garage. Something is going on.”
“Something to do with that phone call?”
“What phone call? Want another beer?”
“Sure.” She followed him to the couch. “That first day I came to help, remember? We overheard him on the phone. Something about being out before eleven?”
“Right. I do remember that. Yeah, I think that’s connected somehow. Karl keeps the garage locked, and not even Jase or Jeff have keys, which is odd. The window is covered. I asked Karl about that. All he said was it was some boxes stacked against the wall inside. And the renters, they looked like trouble.”
“You saw them?”
“Yeah. I went over one Saturday even though Karl had cancelled. They were loading a truck, maybe a van too, I don’t know. There were six, maybe ten guys, and they did not look friendly. You know, sometimes you just see someone and the way they look at you, it’s hard, cold? And Karl was acting nervous.”
“Did you ask Karl about it?”
“He doesn’t want to talk. Says he has it under control and to leave it alone.”
“Want to go down there tomorrow?”
“Karl will shoot me if I get in the way again.”
“Karl doesn’t have to know. We can throw on some jogging clothes, park two blocks down, and just go for a jog down the back alley. We won’t even stop.”
“What good is that going to do?”
“Just trust me, okay? I want to see for myself. Maybe I’ll see something you missed.” Or smell something. Speaking of smells, now that they were sitting closer together and she didn’t have a plate of food under her nose, she realized that Bryce smelled really good right now.
Suddenly it felt like her bear had eaten a bucket of butterflies which were now fluttering about inside of her. She took a deep breath and got another nose full of Bryce’s cologne.
“You’re stubborn.”
She nodded.
“You know what you want and you’re just going to bowl over everyone who gets in your way, even me.”
“Sorry.”
“Why be sorry?”
“I can be overbearing, and blunt, and inconsiderate.”
“I kind of like it. You do know how to compromise, right?”
“Sometimes. Maybe.”
“Well, then, I’m sure we’ll manage just fine, wherever this ends up going.”
She could remember the feeling of his lips against hers, the way the nearness of him made her feel warm and safe and excited. She wanted to feel all of that again.
Well he did just say he liked a woman who went after what she wanted. He is the one pushing this towards a romantic relationship. It’s worth a shot, right? He’ll let me stop if it gets to be too much. She leaned forward, encouraged when he didn’t pull away, and kissed him. It was a sweet kiss, gentle and full of question. Afterwards they hovered, their mouths so close together their breath mingled in the meagre space between leaving her feeling hot and breathless.
His fingers brushed her jaw and he kissed her again, with more heat and hunger this time. For a split second she stiffened, scared by the sudden flair of passion, but the bear was relaxed, content, so she relaxed too and within seconds her heart was racing, not from fear, but from arousal.
The kisses grew deeper as passion and desire built between them. They’d made out a few times, always taking things slow and safe, but there was nothing slow or safe about this. This was all heat, all want, and no second thoughts and no thoughts of her childhood sweetheart.
When he did pull back she was gasping for breath.
“Too much?”
“No. I – I want you to take your shirt off. I want to feel your skin under my hands again.”
Before she could apologize for being too forward, his shirt was on the floor. She’d seen him topless before, had kissed almost down to his chest before, but somehow this was different. The lighting here was softer and it cast his lean muscles soft shadows, making his skin appear tanned and sexy. She ran her hands over his chest, marveling at the feeling.
She pulled him closer, kissing him again, her hands straying over his body as they kissed. She pulled back from him sharply and started fighting with the buttons on her shirt. Why did I wear a blouse today? She got three buttons undo and then thought Fuck it and yanked the shirt over her head. Before he could lean in to kiss her again, she had a hand behind her back and deftly unhooked the clasp of her bra.
“Jane. You don’t have to.”
She responded with a kiss that was all heat. When he still hesitated, she took his hand and placed it on her breast. He didn’t need more urging than that.
Hands roamed over exposed skin, fingers digging in to express pleasure or to ask for more, then ghosting over skin, leaving goosebumps in their wake. They explored with their mouths too, trailing kisses here and there.
Panting, Bryce pulled back, but
Jane followed, kissing his chest. “Is this going any further tonight? Because there’s more space in my room.”
“Hmm?”
“Couch or bed?”
“Bed.” She wrapped her arms around him, pulling herself most of the way onto his lap, and kissed his neck.
“You’ll have to get up,” he managed to say before her lips covered his.
The kiss was long and deep, leaving them both breathless. When she pulled back, she nodded and slid off the couch.
He took her hand and led her across the apartment to the one room she hadn’t seen before. She didn’t stop to look around. She tugged at the waist band of his jeans and muttered, “Off.”
He chuckled. “I’m not complaining but what happened to going slow?”
He watched her cheeks turn a delightful shade of pink.
“Should we stop?”
He wrapped his arms around her. “No, that’s not what I meant. I’m just surprised by all of this.”
“I want you,” she said. “I can lie to myself about it but it won’t change anything. So, I want to see if this will go anywhere. Or how long it’ll be something. Mostly you’re sexy and amazing and I’m turned on right now and want you so bad.”
“Are you going to kill me in the morning?”
“Only if you don’t take those fucking jeans off right now.”
“Got it.”
They both dropped their jeans on the floor and then tumbled into the bed together. It had been a while for both of them so they were both quickly reaching a desperate state of need. Their last scraps of clothing were quickly shed and skin slid over skin.
Bryce took a deep breath, trying to maintain enough self-control to pause what was happening and double check that Jane was okay with where this was heading. He never got the chance.
Jane rolled over him, kissing him deeply, and settled onto him without hesitation.
All thoughts of slowing down evaporated from Bryce’s mind and he wrapped his arms tight around her. They moved together, as much as was possible, their bodies pressed in tight together. Only near the end did she sit up, giving him a glorious view of her naked body as she rode him. His fingers dug into her hips and thighs and his back arched. She just grinned and rode him right to the end.
Finally, she collapsed beside him and they lay there on top of the covers, breathing hard. Even though it was warm, the air felt cool against their sweaty skin.
“That was …” he trailed off.
She turned and snuggled in close against his side. “Yeah.” She sighed. She shifted a bit, getting comfortable. She felt warm and drowsy and safe.
They woke up a few hours later when it got too cool. They got under the covers and shuffled around until they were both comfortable again. The next time they woke, it was full morning and they were a tangle of arms, legs, and blankets.
“I wasn’t expecting this,” Bryce said after kissing her good morning.
“Neither was I. Are you sorry?”
“You mean do I regret it? Nope, not one bit.”
“Me either.”
“Breakfast?”
“Mmm, yes please.”
* * *
A few hours later they were parked at the end of the street, the reno house just out of sight behind the other houses on the block.
“So, what’s the plan here?” he asked, getting out of the car.
“We’re just going for a jog. We’ll stay close to each other and just make our way up the back lane. If there’s no one there, I want to stop and take a quick look at the garage. If there is someone there, we won’t even stop or acknowledge them. We’ll turn right at the end of that block and come up the other street, not in front of the house, and come back to the car.”
“I don’t see what this is going to accomplish.”
“It will appease my curiously. And afterwards we could always have a shower.”
“That’s blackmail.”
“Maybe. Let’s go work up a sweat.”
The back lane behind the reno house was very crowded. A truck, a van, and a car were lined up there and close to a dozen men were milling about. Jane kept her face forward as she jogged by but she was trying to take in as many details as she could.
Most of the guys had darker skin, but here in New Orleans that didn’t tell her much. Cajun, Creole, Mexican, Latino, could be any of those or something else altogether. Two of them were talking in low voices. She didn’t catch the words but they were speaking French. The car was fancy, the van was panel-sided, something movers or contractors would use, and the truck was one of those giant 4x4s that cowboys and construction workers favored. She could smell cologne, exhaust, tobacco smoke, and marijuana. Most of the men were busy carrying packages from the van to the garage. The two speaking French must have been some sort of look out. If there was anyone else in the vehicles or in the yard, Jane didn’t see or hear them.
They finished their circuit and climbed back into the car.
“Well, did you learn anything?”
“If I had to guess, I’d say drug dealers.”
“Shit. If it’s drugs then he’s dealing with one of the local gangs and they’re dangerous.”
“We could call it in.”
“Not yet. They may jump to the conclusion that Karl’s the rat, directly or indirectly, which is sort of true, and they’d go after him.”
“So you’re just going to let them deal drugs out of his garage? What happens when Karl wants to sell the place?”
“I don’t know. He must have told them it was temporary. Maybe that’s why they liked the idea. Jason said they’d rented garage space in a few other places too, probably to the same guys. If the cops do get wind of it, they’d be out of there before any sort of operations could be set up to take them down.”
“I know a few guys who could have it cleared out overnight,” she offered.
“Oh, because that would make them happy,” Bryce grumbled.
“No, but put a rival gang sign on the door with spray paint and take all the packages.”
“And if it’s not drugs?”
“Tell me you honestly believe that those men were doing something legal.”
“Okay, fine. The answer is still no. I can’t risk Karl’s life.”
“It’s your family so it’s your call. But if you want help, I’ve got a lot of different contacts.”
“That’s surprising, considering how private you are.”
They went back to his apartment and showered together, washing each other’s backs and taking the time to explore a little.
Jane in a towel was just too tempting. He came up behind her, wrapped his arms around her, and kissed her neck. She melted against him.
“Come on,” he said, nudging her towards the bathroom door.
They managed to keep the towels on until they got to his bedroom and then they both just let them go. Last night’s sex had been fast and passionate. Today Bryce set a slower pace, taking the time to touch and kiss just about every inch of her before entering her.
There was a moment of panic for Jane as she realized she was trapped beneath him. His whole body was pressed against her, his face nestled beside hers. He’d nibble her ear or neck as he moved inside her and she quickly relaxed again.
Yeah, he was on top. Yeah, he was completely in her ‘space’. But she didn’t feel trapped and she didn’t feel that flight or fight survival mode coming on. Instead she felt cozy and safe. Soon those feelings were joined by desire and pleasure and she wrapped her arms and legs around him, keeping him close.
He kissed her deeply as he climaxed and for a long time after they stayed wrapped tightly around each other.
“I like where this is going,” she said.
“So do I. Do you need another shower?”
“No. How about we go out for dinner? But then I have to get home. I have to make sure that family emergency is still just simmering and hasn’t exploded on me.”
“That sounds like a plan.”
*
* *
Etienne finished his dinner Friday night and sat in front of the TV watching whatever came on even though he wasn’t really interested. He played some games on his phone, checked his e-mails, sent a text to his dad back home, and checked the time every ten minutes or so.
Sometime in the wee hours of the morning, he dozed off. He woke up just before dawn with a start and looked around. Is Jane home? Did I miss her? The TV was still on though and he had no idea what he was watching. He turned the set off and stretched. His back was killing him from sleeping on the couch every night.
He got up and wandered towards the door. He didn’t see Jane’s keys or shoes or purse anywhere but she could have taken everything to her room with her last night. He checked the time and groaned. It’s too damn early.
He went to the bathroom and then paused outside Jane’s bedroom. The door was closed. It had been closed when she left for her date. Did she come home? Is she sleeping in there now? Do I look?
That was a serious question. He wouldn’t know until he looked, or until she got up, or until she walked in that door. Could he wait? Of course he could, but did he want to? If he looked and got caught there’d be hell to pay, and with the way she’d been acting lately he wasn’t sure she’d forgive him.
Everything depends on her liking me and trusting me. What I want doesn’t matter. I’ll just have to wait.
By ten he was sure she wasn’t home or else she’d have gotten up and at least gone to the bathroom. He spent the day watching TV. He ordered a pizza and a bottle of cola for lunch and ate the whole thing over the course of the afternoon.
He wrote a few emails, sent a few texts, and did a lot of pacing. Out of boredom, he spent close to an hour on Jane’s exercise equipment but it did nothing to soothe his restlessness.
He had sent four text messages over the day to Jane’s phone and gotten no response. He was ready to send one with cryptic information about his investigation just to lure her home when the door opened and she walked in. She had a plastic bag looped over one wrist and she was humming. She kicked her shoes off and dropped her keys on their little shelf.
Jane Page 9
