by J. L. McCoy
“I-I can clean it up,” I said, moving to go back. I didn’t want to be the cause of their argument; I knew they were dating.
“No,” Dan shook his head, turning me back around and pushing me out from behind the back of the bar and through the Employees Only door. “She can handle it. We need to get a look at that cut.”
I allowed him to steer me into his office and sat down on the leather couch while he got out the first aid kit. After pulling his office chair over and sitting down, he pulled my bare leg onto his lap and started opening packages of alcohol swabs.
Wincing, I hissed as the liquid came into contact with my cut. “Fuck that hurts.”
“I bet,” he answered sympathetically. “What happened out there?”
I froze at his question and searched my mind for a plausible explanation. Discussing my reaction to my ex’s name would only open the door for more questions. I couldn’t possibly tell Dan the truth, so I lied through my teeth. “It slipped. My hands were a little wet and the handle slipped.”
Meeting my eyes, Dan studied me with concern. Sadly, I knew Dan well enough to know that he didn’t fully accept my story. “Are you sure that’s what happened?”
“What? You don’t believe me?” I asked with a hopefully convincing lighthearted chuckle.
Dan’s brow furrowed as he turned his attention back to my leg. I accepted my black high heel from him and threw myself into cleaning off the blood with the bar towel. After my leg was fully cleaned, Dan looked back up at me.
“The cut isn’t too deep, so you won’t need stitches.”
“Good,” I sighed in relief, giving him a small smile.
“What the fuck happened to you, Nikki?” he asked as he gazed intently at me.
I was silent a moment, too shocked to answer. I hadn’t expected Dan to question me about anything. I thought I’d been careful when I returned to work yesterday; I tried to act as normal as possible. And, I thought I’d done a pretty good job.
“What do you mean, boss?”
Dan’s hand moved fast as he reached over and pushed my miniskirt up less than an inch. My eyes flashed down to my inner thighs and I saw what he’d obviously seen, the yellow and green remnants of bruises.
Gasping loudly at his unexpected and unwelcomed touch, I threw myself further back away from him as my palms thrust out protectively in front of me, keeping him at a distance. Flashes of all the unwelcomed touches that had been forced upon me a few weeks ago came flooding back with a vengeance. “Don’t fucking touch me.” Cursing softly, I jerked my skirt down, took my leg back, and started slipping on my shoe. I didn’t need this right now, and definitely couldn’t handle it. “I need to get ba—”
“No,” he said, gently putting his hand on my wrist, “you need to talk to me, Nik. What the hell was that? You’ve never reacted to me that way. It’s not normal. You haven’t been the same since you came back from your aunt’s house. I wasn’t going to say anything. I thought you were just dealing with something and needed some time, but I can’t overlook the bruises I just saw. Something happened and you need to tell me. If someone hurt you—”
Something my Krav Maga teacher used to say flashed through my mind. “The best defense is a good offense. Attack first.” I decided it applied to this situation, so I took his advice. I didn’t need Dan prying, so hopefully I could scare him off with “old Nikki” attitude. “If someone hurt me, what?” I asked angrily, my eyes flying to his as I crossed my arms and stood up. “What are you going to do, Dan? Ride to my rescue? Call in the Calvary? Please. We both know you’re not the type to get your hands dirty.”
Hurt raced across his features, but I kept going. “If I want you to know something, I’ll fucking tell you. Otherwise, keep your nose…and your hands…out of my business!”
“Nik—”
“No,” I cut him off, putting a hand up in front of me. “You have no right, Dan.”
“I’m worried about you!” he shouted at me, standing up as well, anger evident in his eyes. “For fuck’s sake, Nikki! You’re not acting like yourself. I know you, dammit, and I know something is wrong. Why won’t you just talk to me? I don’t need every detail, but I need to know you’re okay. You’re my oldest employee. Aside from what you think of me, I’ve always been a friend to you and I always will.”
His words gave me serious pause. Dan was only being a good friend and he didn’t deserve the way I was treating him. His touch had made me uncomfortable, but I knew deep down he had no malintent. The fight left my body and I sighed as I slid back down onto the sofa. We were quiet for a while and after a few minutes, Dan lifted my leg back up and finished treating it.
“I’m sorry,” I whispered finally, meaning it fully. “You’re right; you’ve always been a good friend. I shouldn’t have said those things to you.”
“You’re a bitch,” he said with a small smile, shrugging one shoulder. “But it’s one of the qualities I like best about you.”
“Thanks,” I scoffed and smiled back. Sighing, I gave him the only answer I could. It wasn’t the whole truth, but it would have to do. It was admitting far more than I wanted to. “I was with Lyric…things got rough…bad stuff happened and I don’t want to ever see him again.”
“Lyric?” he asked, completely surprised.
If only you knew, I thought bitterly. He’s not the choir boy we all thought he was. “Yes,” I nodded. “I went to my aunt’s house in Maine and you know the rest.”
“Shit,” Dan sighed, his face paling somewhat as what I’d hinted around to finally sank in. “My God. Have you called the police?”
“No, and I’m not going to. It’s over and I really don’t want to talk about it further.” His sad eyes found mine once more and I saw the deep sympathy there. I knew without a doubt that Dan cared genuinely for me and I felt doubly bad for the way I’d treated him. Reaching out for his hand, I grasped it tightly. “I just need to move on…to forget. Okay?” My eyes began to sting and I knew tears were imminent.
“Does Skye know?”
I nodded my head and left it at that. My current relationship with Skye, or lack thereof, was another story.
Dan nodded and put his free hand over mine. “I’m so sorry, Nik. If I’d known, I never would have brought it up; I was just so worried about you. I could tell something was really wrong…”
“Well, now you know,” I near whispered, blinking back the tears. “I’d appreciate it if this didn’t leave the room. I know how close you and Fiona are, but I’d rather not have my business gossiped around behind my back.”
I knew Dan understood when he nodded his head. Fiona was a blathering busybody and if she were told, the whole staff would be talking about it by week’s end. “Your secret is safe with me, doll. I swear. Besides, I won’t be telling Fiona anything. We broke up a few days ago.”
Well, that was news to me. “Was it mutual?”
“Not really,” he sighed. “I just got tired of her shit.”
“She’s kind of a mean girl,” I admitted. “She hid it well for a long time, though.”
“Yeah. That she did.”
Giving him a small, sympathetic smile, I watched as he finished wrapping my leg with gauze.
“If this gives you any trouble, make sure you see a doctor,” he advised as he put the final piece of tape in place. “It shouldn’t though.”
“Thanks, Dan,” I sighed, putting my leg back down on the floor. The bleeding had stopped, thankfully, and there was almost no pain. I was glad it hadn’t been deep. A trip to the E.R. was not something I could do at the moment.
Standing, he put away the first aid kit and offered me a hand off the couch. “Take the rest of the evening off. You can have tomorrow off, too, if you need.”
“No,” I shook my head as I smoothed down my skirt. “I need to work. I need my routine back.”
“Fine, but if you ever need a day, just let me know. It’s yours.”
Nodding my head, I dug Dean’s keys out of my back pocket. “I
appreciate it, Dan. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Getting into my borrowed vintage Charger, I decided to take a detour before heading home to Dean’s. I hadn’t been able to return to my townhouse since I first discovered it had burned to the ground. It almost killed me to see all my hard work go up in flames. Now that I was by myself, and more stable, I wanted to see it again.
When I pulled onto my street, I was shocked to see a cleanup crew busy clearing the debris from both my home and Skye’s. Getting out of Dean’s Charger, I headed straight for the first man I saw.
“Miss,” he cautioned, holding out one gloved hand to keep me from coming any closer, “you can’t be here. This is a restricted site. It’s not safe.”
Stopping a few feet from him, I crossed my arms over my chest and demanded to know who he was. “This is my house. What are you doing here? I didn’t hire you.”
“Oh,” he answered in surprise. “Are you Miss. St. James?”
Nodding my head, I watched as he motioned for me to stay put and went to retrieve a box beside one of their vehicles.
“I have some of your stuff,” he said, setting it at my feet. “It was all we could salvage. I’m afraid the rest is too far gone. It’s not much, but some of it looked important.”
I glanced down at the box, completely surprised, before looking back up at him. “Thank you, but what are you doing here? I didn’t hire you to do this.”
Looking surprised himself, he apologized. “I’m sorry, I thought you knew. Miss. Morrison hired us to save what we could, then clear the rest. The builders will be here in two weeks to start new construction.”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” I shook my head, holding my hands up. “New construction? What the hell are you talking about?”
The man’s mouth opened and closed a few times, obviously at a loss for words. “Um…I’d better have my boss to talk to you, Miss. St. James. I just work here. Hold on a sec while I go find him.”
“Please,” I sighed, putting my hands on my hips. I wanted to know just what the hell was going on here. I hadn’t authorized them to do this and I certainly hadn’t hired them to start building anything here. My insurance check wouldn’t be released for months still. Even then, I wouldn’t have enough to rebuild unless I secured a substantial loan from the bank. The bulk of the payment was going to the lender to pay off the mortgage.
Turning my attention to the cardboard box the man had given me, I crouched down and peered inside. On top was the charred remains of one of my roller derby photo albums. Opening it, I flipped through the damaged pages and smiled when I realized most had made it. The album was really special to me because it documented my first year on the derby circuit with my old team the Hardcore Hunnies.
Closing it, I set the album aside and pulled out a plastic bag full of soot-covered jewelry. It was obvious from their condition that my jewelry box hadn’t made it, but I was grateful to still have them nonetheless. The very last thing in the box was a small, blackened photo. Licking my finger, I rubbed it over the front in an attempt to remove the soot, and I instantly stilled when I realized what I was holding. With tears filling my eyes, I stood up and finished cleaning off the picture. In my hand was my most prized possession, the only photo in existence of both my parents. I sobbed as I stared down into my mother’s eyes, grateful to see them again. The rest didn’t matter, now. I could deal with all I’d lost now that I had the one thing that meant the most to me in my hands.
“Miss. St. James?”
Wiping my eyes, I clutched the picture to my chest as I turned and faced the foreman. “Thank you for saving these for me,” I sniffed gratefully.
“I’m sorry there wasn’t more,” he answered, rubbing the back of his neck, “but we saved what we could. Gary told me you didn’t know we’d be doing the clean up here?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“I just assumed Miss. Morrison would inform you. She hired us last week after the police department gave the all clear on their investigation.”
“I haven’t spoken to her,” I admitted, a bit ashamed.
“Well, she and a Mr. Rhys are footing the bill for the cleanup and new construction. The building crew will be here in two weeks to start work on the new townhouse.”
“I can’t believe she’s doing this,” I said, more to myself than him. I honestly couldn’t believe she was doing all this for me and I was starting to feel a little bad about the current state of our relationship. It was obvious she was doing everything she could to right the wrongs of her father and the vampires who burned our houses down.
“Miss. Morrison was very determined to get this done as soon as possible,” the foreman said, lifting his yellow hard hat to scratch his balding head. “She even paid extra so we’d work on the weekends too.” Digging in his shirt pocket, he pulled out two business cards and held them out to me. “That there is my card. You give me a call if you have any questions, though we won’t be here much longer. I figure we’ll have the land completely cleared in the next four days. That other card there is for a man named Bruce Biggins; he’s going to be the new construction foreman.”
I was at a complete loss for words, but managed to thank the man before he returned to work. I needed to call Skye and talk to her, but I didn’t know if I was completely ready…or if she’d even want to talk to me after the way I treated her. Deciding to give it a few days of thought, I put my charred belongings back in the box and headed to the Charger.
The thirty minute drive south to Dean’s house was filled with the renewed hope that everything was going to be okay. Skye and her boyfriend were taking care of rebuilding my house and I had a guaranteed place to live at Dean’s until it was finished. I knew I had a long way to go emotionally, but I was getting there and I had real hope for my future.
Chapter Ten
Nikki
After rounding the final corner on the long dirt driveway, my eyes widened as I took in the mass of cars packed onto the property. There had to have been at least seventy vehicles. As I pulled up in front of the house, Jojo waved at me from the porch and jogged over.
“Hey, Nikki! You’re here early,” she said with a smile. “Dean said you wouldn’t get off until ten.”
Shutting the car door, I motioned down to my leg. “My clumsy ass dropped a pitcher and got cut on the glass.”
“Oh no,” Jojo worried, looking down at it. “Is it bad?”
“No,” I shook my head, “just barely grazed me. Still, Dan gave me the rest of the night off.”
“Well, good. You’re just in time for the pre-dinner festivities. Come on in and I’ll introduce you to everyone. Most of the guys are barbecuing out back, so it’s mainly just us girls inside.”
I was suddenly nervous to meet everyone and silently wondered if I’d be able to handle the crowd. I briefly questioned if it was too late to change my mind before Jojo put her arm around my shoulders and led me in, putting an end to my potential getaway.
“Look who I found!” she called loudly as I shut the door behind us.
Holly squealed in excitement as she and DeeDee rushed over. “You’re here!”
“I am.” I shrugged my shoulders, a semi-fake smile plastered to my face. I’d noticed the fifteen or so women over their shoulder, all watching me with various looks on their faces. Some seemed welcoming, while others indifferent; a few seemed downright displeased. I couldn’t imagine why, though. I’d never met them before, so they shouldn’t have had anything against me. Maybe it’s because you’re human, I reminded myself.
DeeDee grabbed one arm as Holly grabbed the other and I was dragged further into the room. “Ladies, this is Nikki,” DeeDee introduced. “She’s the bad-ass cook I was telling you about earlier.”
“So, you’re the human who’s been staying with my alpha,” a voice said from the back and the group of women parted as a tall, beautiful brunette approached. I’d noticed when I came in that she was one of the few who were giving me the stink eye. Great. This should be fun.
Holly’s grip on my arm tightened as she came to a stop in front of me. Her green eyes scanned me slowly, head to toe and back, as she took me in. I’d met a lot of women in my twenty-seven years on this earth and knew that look well; bitch was sizing me up.
“That’s me,” I tried to smile as I held out my hand in greeting. “And you are?” I was so not in the mood for drama this evening. I briefly contemplated hiding out in my room, but didn’t think I’d be able to get away with it.
The woman cocked one perfectly manicured eyebrow at me as she put her hands on her shapely hips. At that moment, the room went eerily quiet as all the ladies watched us. “Unimpressed,” she purred indifferently.
There was a collective intake of breath as her statement resonated around the group. Everyone silently watched us for a few seconds, almost like they were waiting for a fight.
My eyebrows rose in astonishment. She was really playing the bitch card, which was fine by me. I didn’t normally take shit from anyone, and wasn’t about to start now, so I dug down deep and dusted my own inner bitch off. Tilting my head, I gave her the same once over she’d given me. “Likewise,” I said as I crossed my arms under my breasts and raised an eyebrow. “I’ve had puppies throw me fiercer shade.”
I heard a few gasps sound, followed closely by several hushed chuckles. The woman’s eyes narrowed in anger as she growled loudly and started toward me. Thankfully, one woman stepped in-between us in an attempt to ease the tension.
“Lighten up, Roxy,” she near-whispered as she put her hand on Roxy’s chest. “Alpha told us to play nice with her.”
“Whatever,” Roxy muttered with narrowed eyes as she distastefully scanned my body once more. “You’d better watch your back, human.” She allowed her friend to lead her back to the couch as DeeDee squeezed my hand and steered me away.
“Holy shit,” she whispered as we walked toward the back door, “that was so freaking intense.”
“Tell me about it.” I frowned. “I thought she was going to hit me.”
