Romance: Luther's Property

by Laurie Burrows

  He turned to look at her, “You know these guys?” He asked.

  “Not really,” she said. “We had a few drinks with them and I guess they thought they were going to get something out of us.”

  Austin took in all of the girl’s words. He also kept his eyes locked on the two guys who didn’t seem to know what to do next.

  “Well, I wouldn’t mind getting something else out of you,” Austin said with a wicked smile. He didn’t need to say any more. The girl seemed to know exactly what he was talking about. She slipped her arm inside of his and they began walking down the street. All the two drunken guys could do was stare as Austin walked off with one of their girls. The girl's two hot friends didn’t spend much more time standing around. They hurried down the block to catch up to Austin and their blond friend.

  Chapter 6

  She was still standing with her arms crossed against her chest. For the last five minutes, Jeffrey had been mumbling excuses and apologies. She was getting sick of hearing from him. But for some reason she couldn’t bring myself to kick him out of the apartment. So she opened another bottle of wine and poured myself a drink.

  “Oh baby, I have an idea. It’s a really good idea,” Jeffrey said, his eyes growing wide with excitement. She sighed and looked away from him. She really wasn’t in the mood for his idea but she knew that wouldn’t stop him from telling her.

  “I’ll order Chinese take-out,” he said. “Delivery will take too long. I’ll go to the place down the street and I’ll pick up some beers.”

  Spending the night in the apartment was certainly not what she wanted but it was better than nothing. She could feel myself beginning to calm down and slowly regain her composure. There was only so long that she could be mad at him. There was something so pathetic about him when he was trying to make up for something he did wrong.

  She wrapped her arms around him and squeezed him tightly. It felt good to feel his body so close to mine. She could hear him crying and sniffling in her hair. She pulled her head back and looked into his eyes. She had never really seen him this emotional. She began to worry that maybe there was more going on than she had suspected.

  “What’s wrong?” She asked. “I know you didn’t mean to mess things up.”

  “But I almost always mess things up,” he said wiping away tears and sniffling. “It seems like everything I do these days goes wrong.”

  She didn’t know how to respond. She’d had never heard him talking so negatively about himself before. And there was only so far that she was willing to go with consoling him. He had screwed up. Big time. And she wouldn’t let him forget. Not for a long time. Maybe never. But there was no point arguing about it anymore. We were either going to make the most of the night or there was no point being in the apartment together. And she definitely did not want to be alone.

  “Okay, baby,” she said. “I like your idea. Why don’t you get the food and I’ll prepare the table.” When she said that, she could see his mood begin to lighten. He stared at her timidly, as if he were afraid that she might hit him or something. It was so weird to see him like that. It was also a real turn off. That may have been the moment when she began to hunger for a real man; a man with some balls, a man that could pick her up in his arms and take her to some far-away place. She wanted a man who would be able to take her on whirlwind adventures. And that’s not what she was getting from this relationship and, when she really thought about it, she realized that she’d probably never get anything like that. She sighed again and wrapped her arms around Jeffrey’s thin shoulders.

  He squeezed her back and whispered in her ear that he loved her. Usually when he said that, she was very quick to respond that she loved him too. But in that moment, she felt something holding her back. She couldn’t bring myself to say anything to him. Her tongue seemed rooted to her mouth.

  So instead of saying anything, she kissed him softly on the lips and smiled at him. That appeared to be good enough for him. A few minutes later he went out of the apartment and headed for the Chinese restaurant down the street.

  A weird feeling came over her body. She couldn’t quite figure it out, what it was or where it had come from. This was turning out to be such a strange day. When she’d woken up in the morning, She had been filled with energy and excitement. She couldn’t wait to celebrate her third anniversary with her lovely boyfriend. But all of those hopes had come crashing down in a matter of hours.

  She had been really looking forward to being intimate tonight. Both Jeffrey and she had been working like crazy over the past few weeks and there had barely been time for us to embrace each other, let alone have sex. She had felt her body calling out for his and this was the time that we would be able to really take our time pleasing each other.

  Fifteen minutes later, Jeffrey came back to the apartment with a bag of steaming hot Chinese food and a six-pack of beer. She’d already had several glasses of wine and she could feel her head beginning to lighten. Jeffrey must have noticed the slightly tipsy look in her eyes.

  “I see you’ve been dipping into the wine,” he said. “You must want to get naughty tonight.”

  Nicole couldn’t help giggling and she quickly covered her mouth. She was supposed to be mad at him. She was supposed to kicking and cursing and screaming and threatening to end the relationship. But despite all that, he still had a way of making her laugh and breaking down her walls. Maybe that’s why she’d fallen for him in the first place. Nothing she did was capable of really throwing him off his game. She loved that. She really did.

  She twirled her hair around her fingers and stared at him seductively, as he laid the food out on the table. Normally she would have been the one setting the table but tonight she felt it was appropriate for him to take care of that. It was the least that he could do. So he wasn’t going to get any pats on the back from her, but she was glad that he was taking a little bit of responsibility for himself.

  After he had put all the food on the plates, Jeffrey came up behind her and put his hands over her eyes. His skin felt warm against her face. The feeling made her smile.

  “Do you promise to keep your eyes closed?” He asked. “She felt giggly and giddy inside.

  “Yes,” She said in her best, little-girl voice.

  “And you promise not to open them until I tell you to?”

  “Yes,” she said again.

  He pulled his hands away from her eyes and a few seconds later he told her to open them.

  When she did, she almost fell off the chair she was so shocked by what he was holding in front of her face.

  Chapter 7

  A deep sense of pride swept over Austin’s body. The other two guys at the table were whispering and starting to show signs of jealousy. Austin tried not to pay any attention to them. He threw his head back and swigged the last of his beer.

  “I’ll be right back,” he said to the girls. The blond girl, named Amanda, tugged on his arm. She had a sad, desperate, needy look in her eyes.

  “You’re not going to leave me are you?” She asked, pleading with him as best she could without embarrassing herself in front of her friends.

  Austin tickled her under her chin and she started giggling. Her friends were staring at her angrily.

  “I’ll be right back, baby. Don’t you worry,” he said. “I’ve just got to make a phone call. That’s all.”

  The girl still seemed worried that her bad boy hunk would disappear into the night. And she had a reason to worry because Austin was known for doing that sort thing. He wasn’t the type of person that felt like he needed to tell you where he was going. He had been like that before going into business with the pack. But once he had joined up with them, he had grown more secretive. That’s why the pack had recruited him in the first place. It was hard to find someone who was tough, confident and brash but who still had enough sense to control their wild urges. He knew how to push, but only so far before shit really hit the fan. He definitely wasn’t the type to ever back down but he also wasn’
t the type of guy who went out looking for fights.

  Austin pushed his way through the packed bar and out the front entrance. It felt good to be back on the street in the night air again. He wasn’t used to bars on streets that were this packed but it seemed like there was almost no place to walk in this city. He didn’t think he would get used to something like this. But for a few days he would be able to deal with it.

  He pulled his phone out of his pocket. There was one missed call. He looked at the number. He didn’t recognize it. He was about to listen to the message but instead he reached into his pocket for a cigarette. That was the real reason he had come out here. He was in desperate need of a smoke but he didn’t want the girls to tag along so he had made up a story about having to make a phone call.

  He took a deep drag on his smoke and imagined who could have left him a message. There were only three people in the entire world that had his number. And they are all associated with the pack. After he had finished his cigarette, he pulled out his phone and stared at the screen again. If I listen to this tonight it might ruin my evening. And this could turn out to be a wild night. But if I wait until tomorrow…Nah, I definitely need to listen to this now.

  But before he could press the phone to his ear and listen to the message, he felt a hand pushing him on the shoulder. His face slammed into the shaft of a street sign.

  “What the fuck are you going to do now, asshole?” He heard someone say, very close to his ear. The sight of blood trickling from his nose snapped him back to his senses. It also infuriated him. He turned around, his eyes wild and hungry for revenge.

  Chapter 8

  For a minute Nicole thought that she was in a dream. This couldn’t be real. It had been a few months since we had even talked about being engaged. We had ended up getting into a fight and we had decided that we wouldn’t broach the subject again until things became a bit less hectic in their lives. We definitely hadn’t reached that point. So she was completely shocked when he asked, “Will you marry her?” as he held the ring in front of her face.

  This was one of the most awkward moments of her life. Why would he put her in this position? She covered her mouth and looked away. She had no idea how to respond to him. She didn’t want to break his heart. She really didn’t. But She couldn’t bring myself to lie to him either.

  “Jeffrey this is really sweet of you,” she said, taking his chin in her hands and staring directly into his eyes.

  “But I don’t think—” she couldn’t quite get the words out.

  She could see the expression in his eyes changing. The excitement and enthusiasm were slowly draining away and they were being replaced by a hard coldness. The look in his eye made her tremble. She had to get up from the table. She had to get away from him.

  She excused myself and walked to the bathroom. She could feel his eyes locked on her. She closed the door to the bathroom and slumped to the floor. She put her head in her hands. She had never experienced a night like this ever in her life. Things were really messed up in her life and especially in her relationship. Nicole knew that Jeffrey and her should have sat down and had a long talk about where we were headed many months ago. But instead we had tried to pretend that the only wrong with us was the fact that we both had crazy work schedules. But that was bullshit. And we both knew it. Not only had the intimacy been absent from the relationship but it also seemed that the attraction and spark that reminds people why they choose to live together had also disappeared.

  Then Nicole realized that she hadn’t actually given Jeffery an answer. She imagined him sitting at the table with his head in his hands crying. She wanted to go and comfort him. But before she left the bathroom, she heard his fist banging on the door. The sound startled her. Then she heard him turning the knob back and forth.

  “Nicole, what the hell are you doing in there? Are you on the phone?”

  She had never heard him speak to her like that. The only time she had ever seen him lose his temper was during a telephone conversation that he was having with his mother.

  His fist banged on the door several more times. She was afraid that he might knock a hole in the door. That would be enough to get us locked out of the building. She couldn’t just sit there and let him mess up her life even more. And, like she said before, the walls in the building are notoriously thin. If Jeffrey kept on banging like that, someone would be sure to file a complaint with the super. And once that happened who knew where things could end up. Sometimes you got a warning. Other times you got a fine. And sometimes you got evicted.

  “I’m coming out!” She yelled. “Stop banging.”

  She took a few deep breaths and slowly unlocked the door. When she pulled it open Jeffery was on the floor. He looked completely disheveled. He looked so pathetic like that. And she had the desire to comfort him. He looked up at her with his sad puppy- dog eyes. She didn’t respond. She held her arms across her chest and stared down at him. She couldn’t believe that she had been in a relationship with this man for three years and she had never seen this side of him. So this is how he acts when things get a little rough for him and he doesn’t get his way? She snickered and shook her head. He could see that he wasn’t going to be able to talk himself out of this one.

  So instead of talking he crawled over to her and wrapped his arms around her legs. It felt so awkward to be standing there with him like that. She had a strong urge to push him away. But she didn’t want to hurt him anymore. She just wanted to let him know where she stood in their relationship.

  “It’s okay, Jeffrey, it’s okay. Just get off your knees, okay?”

  He looked up at her without saying anything. Then he wiped the tears from his eyes and sniffled. He slowly got back to his feet. When he did, he wrapped his arms around her. His body felt so warm against mine. And before she knew what was happening. She sensed feelings of tenderness and affection welling up inside of her. It was so difficult for her to be angry with this man for very long. He seemed to be able to melt her defenses and break down her walls without even really trying. She wasn’t sure whether She was a pushover or he was extremely manipulative. She sighed and tried to push thoughts from her mind.

  She took his hand and began walking towards the bedroom. He stopped walking and tried to pull her in the other direction.

  “Shouldn’t we finish eating?” He asked. “There’s so much food.”

  She pressed her finger to his lips and told him to follow her. His eyes grew wide with surprise. And then she could have sworn that she saw a sly smile like across his lips. He knew what she wanted. And she wanted him to give it to her better, harder, and deeper than he had ever given it to her before.

  Chapter 9

  The fists and kicks came hard and fast. But Austin didn’t have any problem protecting himself and dodging the few shots that actually came close to landing. He was preparing his own counter-attack. It was three dudes. He recognized the guy he’d dealt with earlier. Well, at least this isn’t gang-related, he thought. I shouldn’t have a problem handling these pussies.

  He smiled, and then brushed a tangle of blond hair out of his eyes. He could be a bit of a prima donna like that, showing off for the onlookers, especially the pretty ladies, but he’d also want to send a message to all the men gathered round. He was the big cock. The giant, cosmic, radioactive, super-hero cock. The only cock needed when he was on the block.

  PAM!!!

  Austin’s head snapped back, his eyes closed. His head hit the pavement with a loud thump.

  “OOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHH”, said the onlookers that had gathered around. And then a few of them giggled and pointed their phones in the direction of his sprawled out body. The punch had caught him on the blind side. The cheap-shot artist scurried off into the night, while the three dudes that had been about to jump on Austin stood over him with confused expressions.

  They whispered something amongst themselves and then took off, pushing their way through the four-person deep crowd that had converged on the site.


  Austin felt a ringing in his ears as he limped into the dingy McDonald’s near Penn Station. He’d heard through the grapevine about this. It was a good spot to buy and sell some dope. He was definitely looking to get his hand on a bit of heroin; then he would find some hookers and party. He was done with square girls for the evening. He would stick to the kind of women who would understand his frontier a wild man on the loose on a bike, living a gun-slinging, dope-dealing life of a white trash cowboy from the southwest of these here United States.

  A bottle of Jack Daniels and some Heinekens would be perfect to wash it down. His cock was getting hard just thinking about the fun that he was going to have.

  Austin surveyed the scene. This was definitely the shadiest, most drugs infested McDonald’s he’d seen in his life. And he’d seen more than a couple during the road trips on his bike. People, wearing clothes that looked and smelled like they hadn’t been cleaned in weeks, occupied most of the restaurant’s tables. They were nodding out, arguing with each other, or talking to themselves.

  Austin saw one dude go into a bathroom. A few seconds later a woman came out of the same door. Austin smiled and shook his head. It was going to be easier than he’d hoped to find some dope in this place. Maybe when they get a little more comfortable they’ll start slinging it closer to the front.

  I need to get the hell out of here as soon as I get my shit. The cops can’t be too far away. They’ll nab somebody on something small if they want a big favor. There was no doubt that they kept some type of surveillance on this place.

  Austin stepped into the bathroom. A Puerto Rican dude with red eyes and gaunt face looked Austin up and down.

  Austin thought for a moment that there might be a problem. He was getting a bad vibe from this dude. He wasn’t really used to dealing with Puerto Ricans and didn’t really know what angle to take.