Romance: Luther's Property

by Laurie Burrows

  She ran my fingers through his hair and tried to comfort him as best she could. Then she wiped away a few tears that had begun to form in his beautiful, light green eyes.

  For the next hour they’d stayed on the couch, talking and crying. By the end of the day she had completely forgotten about the female names she’d found on his phone and the sexually suggestive texts that she’d seen.

  But now all these months later, those memories were coming back. And she felt as if all of her mind and body were being taken over by thoughts of jealousy.

  Chapter 3

  Austin woke up in the middle of the night to the sound of his phone beeping. He felt certain that it was Tanya. About damn time, he said to himself. When he picked up the phone, he grunted in disappointment. There were several new email messages sent to him by Nicole the wedding planner. Each one of them showed purchases that Tanya had requested that Nicole make for the wedding.

  Austin blinked several times as he stared at the astronomical bills. She’d paid more than 40,000 for a floral arrangement. and almost 65,000 for some kind of artisan silverware.

  What the fuck! His mind was made up. There was no way that he was going through with this wedding. He didn’t love Tanya. Never had. And it was very unlikely that she loved him. The whole thing was such a farce.

  He hopped out of bed and paced around his room. It was a tough decision. But It was one that he had to make.

  He called the wedding planner and let her know that the whole charade was being called off. There was a long silence as Austin waited for her to respond.

  Even though the wedding was canceled, the bachelor party was still held at a discrete Las Vegas strip club. Normally, Austin loved taking those sorts of trips with his friends. It was a chance to bond away from the field and the practice facility, a chance to just be regular guys.

  But during this trip, he was clearly out of it.

  “You're single again,” Brian, a big, burly offense lineman said. “Just like I predicted.

  He burst out laughing and so did the other three guys sitting at the table. Lights swirled around them. Waitresses in skimpy ass showing shorts, tight titty popping tops, sauntered around providing bottle service. Leggy blondes with big boobs and tattoos worked their way up, then slid down golden poles.

  “Some of the guys thought that you would go through with it,” Brian said. “Sometimes it's too easy to take people's money.”

  Austin raised his head and stared directly at the big, bear of a man.

  “What?” He said, a look at confusing confusion etched on his face.

  What Brian told him nearly made his head explode. A few the guys on the team had bet about whether or not he would be able to go to through with the marriage to Tanya. Brian was the only one that had been able to see the sham engagement. He ended up winning around $40,000.

  “That's fucked up,” Austin said. “If you weren’t already so ugly I would consider bashing your face in.”

  Brian chuckled and put his arm around Austin's shoulder.

  “It was just a friendly wager,” Bryant said. “No offense meant.”

  “Is that so?” Brian asked.

  “Yes, it is. And to prove I’m going to give you a chance to win some money from me.”

  “How much?” Austin asked.

  “Hold on a second. Let me tell you what I want you to do first.”

  While Austin listened, he closed his eyes and shook his head. This was so ridiculous! Brian wanted him to travel across the country, track down the cute wedding planner, somewhere in NYC and carry on a two-month relationship with her.

  “Are you serious?” Brian asked.

  Brian smiled and nodded his head up and down.

  “How much?”

  “80,000.”

  Austin looked out of the coffee shop window on to the busy East Village Street. Everything was such a blur to him. He had only rolled into town a few days ago and he knew that it would probably take him a while to get acclimatized to this place. He had come from all the way across the country. Sometimes long trips would help he refocus. He definitely needed that right now. So many mixed emotions swirled in his head.

  He’d spent part of his life in Colorado and the rest in Texas. He had the wild western spirit. And that’s what people loved about him. But it certainly wasn’t the only thing. And no matter what town he found himself in or what town he was being run out of, either by the police or jealous husbands and boyfriends, there was always a woman for Austin Daniels. He had the kind of swagger that made women melt.

  He was the bad boy that so many women dream about. But this guy was the real thing and you could tell by the cold gleam in his beautiful green eyes. He had a chiseled, masculine jaw that always had a few days stubble on it.

  But for all his tough guy looks and ways, Austin felt very out of place in New York City. He loved the wide-open spaces. He loved the desert roads. He embodied that true western frontier spirit. He was coming up on his twenty-eighth birthday and he showing no signs of slowing down. He could never imagine having to settle down and start a family. He couldn’t believe that other men actually worked really hard just for the privilege of leading such a boring life.

  Yet, he’d been so close to tying the knot. Just a few weeks away.

  Nope. That sort of life would never be for Austin. He would be on the open road for his entire life.

  The waitress brought his plate to the table. “Here’s your coffee. Milk with two sugars. And here is the bacon, home fries, and French toast”, The middle-aged woman with brown eyes looked Austin up and down.

  It had probably been a long time since she’d gotten with a stud that young. And she seemed to be imagining all of the things that they could do together. Austin knew that the woman was checking him out. But he had grown plenty used to that over the years. Women, young and old, couldn’t help but stare and continue to stare as their minds drifted off into fantasyland. But no girl had been able to win his heart, to really make him want to settle down.

  The waitress eventually walked away from the table, but she had a big grin on her face and a twinkle in her eye. Austin had been on his bike all night and he hadn’t bothered to stop. Or rather he might have been afraid that if he stopped he would end up turning back. This city was just so damn big. He knew that he would never be comfortable in a place like this. There were just too many people.

  After Austin finished eating, he swigged the last bit of coffee, and went outside for smoke. He felt a little better now as the city moved all around him. Nobody seemed to make eye contact. They were either staring straight ahead or looking at their phones and iPods. He wondered how people got to meet each other in a place like this. But then two police cars passed and he snapped back to the present moment.

  After he smoked his cigarette, Austin got on his hog and revved the engine. He didn’t look forward to riding through all that city traffic. But he would deal with it one way or another. He had heard some crazy stories about drivers in New York being really aggressive to bikers. That had made him laugh at the time. He figured that if he could handle some of the assholes driving on the highways of California, then he could handle aggressive drivers anywhere.

  He rode through the midtown traffic and made it back to the hotel he was staying at. It was downtown and a five star hotel. And his grimy biker appearance definitely raised some eyebrows. But he didn’t pay any attention to that.

  He’d heard that the East Village was the place to meet cool, young people on the weekends. So he fired up the hog and headed down there. He loved the looks of appreciation and desire that he got from the New York women. Maybe this place ain’t so bad after all, he thought. He smiled and powered the bike through traffic. He felt like a king on the bike and he looked like one as well, the alpha male king. He threw his head back and screamed into the wind. Several women stopped on the sidewalk, pointed towards him, and began giggling.

  Chapter 4

  “Are you sure?” Nicole asked, her voice quivering wi
th fear and anxiety.

  This was the biggest wedding that she’d ever done. So much had been riding on this. If it was canceled, she would be completely screwed.

  Nicole informed her boss that the celebrity wedding that everyone had been looking forward to had been canceled. When she hung phone, she felt like everything would turn out all right. Her boss was disappointed. But he seemed to be keeping things in perspective. There would be other big weddings, plenty of them.

  Unfortunately, that didn't turn out to be the case. An hour later, he called back to inform her that her services would no longer be needed. Nicole begged and pleaded for another chance. She wouldn't mess up again. It wasn't her fault. But none of that worked. She was unemployed.

  After she hung up the phone, she walked over to the couch and let her head slump into her hands, clueless about what her next move would be. But she was sure about one thing: Austin Daniels was a first-class asshole!

  After about an hour of non-stop texting and calling, Jeffrey finally decided to get in touch with her. He was in a loud place, probably a bar. She could barely understand what he was saying. But basically he said he was really sorry for having screwed up and he was going to make it up to her. All she could think about was what she would have done if he were there in the room with her. She felt like strangling him. She couldn’t believe that he had ruined their anniversary. And on top of that he had given her such a lame excuse. She had a very strong feeling that he was lying.

  But she didn’t know what to do. If she accused him of cheating he would probably act very defensive, whether he was guilty or not. She felt so sick to her stomach. All she wanted to do was lay on the floor crying. Instead of doing that, she sent him a stream of angry texts telling him how much of a jerk he was. And how he wouldn’t be getting sex from her for a long time. She meant all those things when she said them. And then she had the strong urge to throw her phone across the room and watch it smash into little pieces. She had never felt so insulted by someone She cared about.

  She poured herself a glass of white wine and sat down on the couch. She couldn’t even bring herself to turn on the TV. She just sat there staring at the blank screen. What was her life coming to? Why had she decided to come to New York City in the first place? Maybe she would have been better off staying out west. She felt tears beginning to well up in her eyes. She didn’t want to be on her couch, crying and feeling sorry for herself. But she really had no idea what else she was supposed to do in this sort of situation. She sent off a few texts to her friends to let them know what this asshole had put her through. But she figured that they had their own Friday night problems because they didn’t seem like they were in any hurry to respond to me.

  She took her glass of wine over to the window and sat down on the edge. The scene down on the street below was so vibrant and alive. It seemed silly to stay in her apartment on a night like this. The loud sound of a motorcycle almost made her drop her drink and it definitely snapped her back to the present moment. The bike came to a stop at a traffic light right in front of her window. The engine made a few loud sounds, thunderous sounds that made her whole body shake. She began to wonder what it must have felt like to ride around on that thing all day. And suddenly my mind began to wander again and she thought about all of the things that might have been missing in my life. Yes, she had this wonderful apartment in one of the hippest neighborhoods in one of the hippest cities, but she still felt like something was missing. And after being stood up by Jeffrey, she felt even stronger about it.

  She was hoping that the guy on the bike would turn and look at me. She wanted to stare at his face, gaze into his eyes. What was his life like? How would her life be different if she went on the run with him? But he didn’t turn and look at her. When the light turned green, he zoomed off.

  She drank a few glasses of wine and walked around the apartment listening to sad love songs. She was actually starting to feel better, slowly putting the disappointment of the night behind her. But then she heard a key opening the front door and all of the bitterness and anger came flooding back to her. It was Jeffrey. Two hours after their dinner reservation this asshole decides to come home.

  She crossed her arms against her chest and kept her eyes locked on the door. When he opened it, he had a big, stupid grin on his face. That was his “ I fucked up please don’t hit me Mommy” face. It made her absolutely sick. She wanted to throw her phone at him. But somehow she managed to contain herself.

  His tie was undone and the tope three buttons on his shirt were unbuttoned. He had clearly been drinking. He walked towards her with that same stupid grin on his face and his arms held out wide. He really thought that he was going to be able to sweet talk his way out of this. There was no way that was going to happen.

  He wrapped his arms around her in the middle of the apartment and she just stood there with her arms crossed against her chest. Not only had he been drinking whiskey and beer but he had also been smoking. He reeked of cigarette smoke. That pissed her off even more. He knew how much she hated cigarette smoke. And he had promised her months ago that he had quit forever. She wondered what other things he was doing behind her back.

  “C’mon baby, what’s wrong,” he said. She was doing her best to keep from screaming. She didn’t want to make a scene. The walls in their apartment building were notoriously thin. If she raised her voice, everyone was sure to hear it. She didn’t want to end the night with the police beating on the door. Things were already bad enough.

  She couldn’t keep quiet any longer. She sighed and pushed him away from her.

  “You know exactly what’s wrong,” She said. “You really fucked up this time.”

  That knocked the smile off his face. He lowered his eyes and shook his head.

  “I know baby, I’m really sorry. It’s just that things have been really stressful at work, and she needed a release.”

  “It was our anniversary!” She screamed.

  He backed up. It was beginning to dawn on him just how pissed she was.

  Chapter 5

  Austin rode his hog through the Manhattan streets until the sun began to go down. He needed something to eat and he was definitely in the mood for something to drink. A few shots of whiskey and some beers were just what he needed. The lights and energy of the lower east side swirled around him. Everywhere he turned he saw attractive women in funky clothing with all sorts of piercings and tattoos. He didn’t really think these kids were bad ass or anything like that. They were just copying styles that they had seen guys like him wearing, or that they thought guys like him wore. But he didn’t feel like spending much time worrying about that. He felt a lot more comfortable here than he had felt in Midtown. He parked the hog and took a look around.

  His body tingled with electric energy. There was something in these streets that he hadn’t noticed before. Everyone seemed so alive and happy. The only thing that bothered him a little bit was the humidity and the smells. He had no idea that it could get this hot and muggy in New York. He was in desperate need of something to quench his thirst and a nice young lady or two who would give him the opportunity to strip out of his clothes. But he knew that once he started really drinking he wouldn’t be worrying about the heat any more.

  The smells hadn’t caught him completely by surprise. Big cities could stink like this when the weather got really hot. He knew that from having spent a lot of time in LA. But this New York stench was much stronger than any city stench he had ever encountered.

  But this wasn’t the time to worry. He had a night to enjoy himself and he was going to take it. Tomorrow he would have to make a series of pickups and drop-offs and he would really have to focus and take care of everything in a very professional manner. Tonight was the night for him to experience some fun and maybe even some sex in a far off place. He wanted to return to the west with plenty of stories to tell.

  A group of giggling girls in short skirts passed him walking arm in arm. Austin’s eyes lingered on the girls’ supple pa
le flesh. He could feel his dick getting hard in his pants. He reached down and squeezed. He could feel every part of his body crying out for pleasure, crying out for communion with another body. “Damn,” he said to himself under his breath. “My cock is so damn hard”. He’d been riding for days and days and he hadn’t taken any time to masturbate while on the road. And he hadn’t stayed in any place long enough to really dig his claws into any girls. And dig his claws was exactly what he did. And it usually only took him a few days. But on this journey he hadn’t had that much time.

  “Ahhhh”, a girl screeched close to Austin’s ear. Then he felt several bodies bumping into him. It was a group of three girls. They had all fallen to the concrete. There were two drunken guys standing over them swaying back and forth, side to side, with wild looking expressions on their faces. Austin immediately assessed the situation. He was no stranger to conflict. And he was no stranger to street fights. If he had to fight these guys, he gladly would. Besides, he seemed much more muscular and imposing than either of them.

  “Are you girls all right?” Austin said, helping the girls back to their feet one at a time. When all three of them were back standing up on their sexy heels, Austin took a good look at them. Blondes and brunettes, they were skinny with lots of makeup. Austin felt his cock getting hard in his pants. Once again he couldn’t resist squeezing the hard bugle. One of the girls he had helped up, a blonde with pretty blue eyes, could see that he checking all of them out. She smiled and licked her lips. Apparently, she was enjoying all of the attention.

  “Yes, we’re okay,” the blond girl said to Austin, her eyes twinkling with lust. Her eyes roved up and down the bad boy biker’s sexy body. She stopped and lingered when she got to the crotch area. She seemed impressed.

  “Who the fuck are you, man?” One of the drunken guys said to Austin.

  The blond girl put her hand on Austin’s arm.