Quill
Black’s eyes glowed as he hovered only a few inches from my face. I could smell his aftershave and a sort of spiciness I couldn’t quite place. The fact he was in my hospital room both stunned and embarrassed me. I should be shocked he’d found me, but I knew finding people was something this man was very good at. But why did he care if I was here at all?
“Explain to me, Quill, why exactly you’re in a hospital bed?” The timbre of his voice vibrated up my spine. I wanted to tell him, but I knew it would make me look weak. To a man like Black, letting someone beat the shit out of you because you were too afraid to fight back would be pathetic. What Black didn’t know, what he couldn’t, was that unless you could kill them, fighting back was simply dragging out the inevitable.
“It’s winter, Black, I was climbing the steps to get into my building and I fell. My shit landlord didn’t salt the steps.” When he narrowed his eyes, I knew he was trying to sniff out the lie.
“How many steps is it into your building?”
Weird question. “Three, maybe four, why?”
When he huffed, his breath wafted over me. Mint and whiskey.
“I’d believe the arm, maybe, but the conveniently placed bruises on your face? No. You’re lying to me. Why?” He stood to his full height. A blond, beautiful giant. Thor and Satan for sure. I loved his long hair glittering like strands of gold. He always wore it in a braid, and tiny flecks of gray peeked through. I always wanted to pull the tie out and see it free-flowing. I would bet it was like a silky mane, and with his sculpted beard, he was as mighty and glorious as a lion. Oh, for fuck’s sake, what kind of drugs was I on?
“I’m not lying,” I said with as much conviction as I could muster. The headache I had almost gotten rid of began to surface again.
“When did this ‘tumble’ happen?” He used air quotes for tumble, and for a minute, I thought the sarcasm was a little out of place for him.
“Night before last. Yeah, I think that’s right?” I tried thinking what day of the week it was. Atlas had called me yesterday, and I told him I couldn’t work and why, and he said fine so…
“The night I saw you at Quirks and Perks?” An adorable look of confusion adorned his face and I sort of wanted to squish his cheeks.
“Yeah.” I nodded. The smile he gave me was one of victory. I had fucked up somehow.
“It just started snowing last night. Before that, there hasn’t been snow or rain for over a week.” He pointed an accusing finger at me. “Stop lying.”
“I am not lying.” My voice raised and I was about to go into a terrific and believable story when Lee, one of Black’s men, walked in.
“He’s lying,” Lee stated barely above a whisper, but it was heard loud and clear.
“How the hell do you know? And why are you even here?” I was getting indignant and my head was officially pounding.
“How do you know he’s lying?” Black addressed Lee, who rolled his eyes as if insulted by the question.
“When you instructed me to come here, I called Lana like you told me to. She gave me the address to drop off the package, we can talk about why it was delivered to a top-notch cardiologist later, and then she asked if while I was going to the hospital if I was visiting Quill.”
The package. Of course, that was why Black was here. I was supposed to have gone to the dock to pick up a delivery. It wasn’t me he was worried about, he wanted to know why I was in a hospital bed because I hadn’t done my job.
“I asked Lana what she was talking about and she filled me in best she could. So, I took a cab on my way here so I could do a little digging.” Lee continued like he wasn’t destroying my entire reputation to Black.
“Did you now?” Black gave me a smirk I half wanted to smack but mostly wanted to lick.
“Two nights ago, Ronald Sterling, son of Bartholomew Sterling, was arrested for domestic assault. Normally, domestic disputes are a dime a dozen, but not for the Sterling family. However, I stumbled upon that information after contacting Quill’s landlord.” Lee spoke as if I wasn’t even in the room, and I wanted to scream.
“Get to the point, Lee, please.” While Lee wouldn’t look at me, Black wouldn’t take his eyes off me, and it was strange. I wanted this man’s undivided attention all the time, but right then, in the glare of his judgement, not so much.
“Two nights ago, there was a call to Quill’s place for a domestic disturbance, and you can guess the rest.” Lee waved his hand in a yadda yadda way. “I’m assuming you called me down here to find all this out to begin with, and since I have and I’ve told you, should I be going?”
“Hold on.” Black held his hand up, silencing Lee. “Why are you still in the hospital? Usually, they patch people up and send them on their way.”
Yeah, and all the times I’d been to the hospital, it was normally what they did. “I have, well, had a concussion. I’m being discharged today.”
“But still, you can be discharged for a concussion,” Lee added, and I really wanted him to leave.
“Can you go now?” I asked the man who seemed to want to scram just as much as I wanted him to.
“Quill, allow me to explain everything to you,” Black began. I watched as he grabbed a chair and slid it beside my bed, then sat. “I’m guessing you had no one at home to wake you hourly, and that is one reason they kept you. I’m also guessing it’s not your first concussion, and that worries doctors a lot as well.” He was exactly right. He sat cool as ever, hands folded on his lap, regarding me.
“Maybe,” I said.
“Lee, where is this Ronald Sterling now?”
“Out on bail,” he said, bored.
“I see.” Black’s eyes scanned over my body. The intensity of it all made it feel like it was his hands. I wished it was. “Lee will be going to your place and setting up security for you when…”
Lee interrupted Black, and for a minute, I thought Black was going to shoot him for the disrespect.
“I don’t mean to interrupt, but I can’t do that.”
Black scoffed at Lee. “You can and you will.”
“No, sir, I can’t, because when I spoke to the landlord today, he explained that Quill wasn’t welcome back. Because he has a weekly lease with him, it expired yesterday. He can’t return. He did say he will keep the apartment unrented for a week, giving him time to remove his belongings.” Lee began scrolling through his phone, searching for what, I didn’t know. All I could think about was the fact I had lost another place to live.
“I will speak with this landlord. If he wants Quill out, that’s fine, but he will give him enough time to find another place. Text me his number. In the meantime, Lee, go and look around Quill’s apartment and prepare a security plan. When I’m done with the landlord, Quill will be able to stay there.” Lee nodded and left.
“You do know my landlord will be making my life miserable if you force him to keep me there. You get that, right?” I didn’t know why Black was caring at all what happened to me, probably because he needed me back to doing his deliveries.
“No. He won’t.” Black’s phone vibrated, likely the text he was waiting for, and then he put his phone to his ear. I watched transfixed as he spoke to my asshole landlord.
“Good morning, are you the landlord for the property, The Fielding Complex? Wonderful, then you’re who I need to speak with. My name is Terrence Blackrose of…” There was a silence, and I sat there with my mouth agape. Terrance Blackrose? Many months ago, and anytime since, I’d look at the credit cards he used, but there was never anything on there except Red Rose Securities. Terrance… Yeah, I could see it. I knew I was smiling, and when Black narrowed his eyes at me, I also knew it was his way of telling me to knock it off.
“Yes, of Red Rose Securities. One of my men was staying in one of your apartments, Quill Almeida…” Another pause. I knew my shitty landlord, Lenny, was telling Black how horrible I was. “I don’t really care what your opinion is of my employee. I do care that you illegally evicted him while he is laid up in the hospital. Now, if you know who I am, you know that I’m not going to let that just go. So let me tell you what you’re going to do next. You’re going to leave Quill the hell alone. He will be allowed to stay there, paying rent, until he’s ready to vacate the premises. If at any time his stay there is unpleasant, or you talk to him even to say hello, you will be greeted with swift force. You’re somewhat smart. I’m sure you can figure out what I mean by that, yes?”
I didn’t know anything that happened after that. I stared, stunned and speechless, as Black, without raising his voice once, put my landlord in his place.
“There. Now you can stay at your place. Lee will set up your security. When you’re all healed, you and I will have another chat.”
I still couldn’t talk. I wanted to climb him like a tree, wrap myself around his body, and never let go.
“Speak words, Quill.”
It wasn’t until he touched my hand that I regained my ability to talk.
“I want to lick your whole body.” Yep, those were the words I spoke. Awesome. Go me.