Lauren

December 2014

 

 

Elizabeth winced and I sprang into action. “Do you need me to recline you? Water? The nurse?”

She shook her head and pointed at the cup of water. “Just water,” she mumbled.

Landon had beaten her so viciously that her jaw, finger, and three of her ribs were broken. The surgeon wired her jaw shut and it was hard to understand what she was saying unless you were right next to her. Unfortunately, her baby had taken the brunt of the trauma and had to be taken by emergency C-section. Kaden weighed two pounds and eight ounces and was currently fighting for his life in the NICU.

It was senseless.

Had Mike not insisted that we all have Find My Friends, she would’ve bled to death. I brushed a stray tear off of my cheek and went back to rambling. “We’ve got to quit meeting like this,” I gently teased and her lips turned up in the slightest of smiles.

I didn’t even know what I was talking about, but I felt like I needed to talk enough for both of us. If I was talking then I wasn’t questioning where Mike disappeared to that night. I wasn’t left wondering why he wasn’t returning my calls or texts. I could pretend that everything was fine.

Elizabeth squeezed my hand and laid against my shoulder as we sat side by side in the small hospital bed. After finding the office like I did, I wasn’t sure that I’d ever see her again. I’d answered countless questions for the police and resisted the urge to call Mike for updates as they searched the office and wrote up their reports.

The commercial for fabric softener disappeared and was replaced with a breaking news banner.

“We’re back tonight with the latest on the search for Landon Scott, the man behind the disappearance of Katya Egorichev. Egorichev was found severely dehydrated and suffering from malnutrition. Her injuries are considered non-life threatening and she is recovering in a local hospital tonight.

“We’ve just learned that Elizabeth Greene was the unidentified female rescued along with Egorichev. Greene, twenty-eight weeks pregnant at the time of abduction, was severely beaten. She was taken by medical helicopter to an undisclosed local hospital where she underwent emergency surgery. Both mom and baby are recovering in the hospital and are expected to make a full recovery.

“Landon Scott was injured in an altercation with a police officer, but managed to flee the scene. His vehicle was found yesterday morning buried in a snow drift. Blood inside the vehicle matched that found on scene. If you have any information on his whereabouts, you are urged to call…”

Elizabeth’s face paled and she began shaking her head while making a choking sound. “Elizabeth?”

She shook her head harder and began hyperventilating. I held her arms down and glanced helplessly around the room. “David? A little help please…”

He jumped up out of the hospital chair and ran over to us. “Beth—deep breaths, baby. He can’t hurt you anymore.”

Her chest heaved and she forced out through clenched teeth, “He’s going to come back for me and Kaden—he’s going to hurt him. I can’t let him do that. David, you have to warn the doctors and nurses.”

I grabbed the call button, but David shook his head, stopping me. “Beth, look at me. He can’t hurt you anymore. He will never hurt you again.”

That sounded like…

“David?” I asked, before stopping myself.

He shook his head again. “He’ll never be found.”

How would he know that?

Elizabeth placed her hand on his. “You did something, didn’t you?”

He used his free hand to stroke her hair before replying, “I took care of my family. That’s all you need to know, baby.”

She thanked him, but I sat silent in shock. David killed someone. It didn’t make sense. There was no way a construction worker could kill someone in this day and age without the police finding out.

Unless the police were in on it.

Oh, Jesus.

“Excuse me,” I mumbled as I slid out of the bed and toward the door.

“Lauren, wait,” David called after me, but I ran around a corner, losing him by the nurse’s station.

Oh my god.

Oh my god.

I pressed the down button on the elevator frantically, each breath more labored than the last. The doors finally opened and I jumped inside before hitting the close button. I couldn’t get my thoughts straight.

If it were me, would I have made the same decision? I leaned my back against the cold metallic wall as the car descended, fighting with my morality. It wasn’t right, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t the right thing.

Halfway across the parking lot and I knew why my boyfriend had gone MIA. He’d crossed a line that he knew he couldn’t come back from. As I started my car and let it heat up, I wondered if I was capable of crossing over to join him.

I’d just come to accept the fact that my mother was cozied up with an outlaw biker. I didn’t know if I could fit a crooked cop into the mix too though.

If it came right down to it, was I even capable of walking away from him?

I told him I loved him. Did that love have an expiration date? Or was it covered under a lifetime warranty? When it came to transactions of the heart, what was the return policy?

 

I pulled down the familiar dirt driveway a little after midnight. That’s how long it took me to decide. I paced my apartment and played the ‘what if’ game.

In the end though, it came down to raw emotion. Mike had been the only man for the last four and half years. After that night in Galveston, he was it for me, flaws and all.

I parked and zipped up my jacket before stepping out onto what had become a skating rink as the snow had melted and then frozen again over the past few days. Thirty harrowing seconds later, I made it onto the porch and knocked softly at the door.

Two minutes after that, I realized that I was going to be dead and frozen by the time he decided to let me in. I tried the door handle and felt like jumping up and down in excitement when it opened into a warm house.

“Mike?” I called softly, but the house remained dark and silent. I half expected Betsy to jump out at me with steri-strips in her hands. That was a sight guaranteed to send me to an early grave.

I knew he was home. His truck was parked outside. I crept silently from the dining room into the living room, both were empty. I found him in the kitchen, hunched over the table with a bottle of tequila in his fist.

“Mike?”

His head shot up and he instinctively reached for his gun.

“It’s me!” I shouted and he relaxed before dropping his head back down.

“I know why you’re here.” He looked wretched and the resignation in his voice damn near broke me.

“Are you drunk?” I gestured toward the bottle, but he shook his head.

“No, and not for lack of trying either. David told me you knew.”

I slipped my jacket off before pulling a chair out and joining him at the table. “I do and I'm not going to lie to you—it threw me.” His eyes dropped back down to the tequila bottle. “But, I would’ve made the same call.”

Mike looked up at me in surprise. “You would've? Well, Darlin’, that shocks the shit out of me.”

I took a deep breath and blurted out, “My mom’s in a biker gang and not the type you see doing charity drives at Christmas. I didn’t know how to tell you before—” I trailed off, suddenly unable to finish the sentence.

Before you killed someone.

He laughed. “Yeah, that’s a deal breaker for me.”

I frowned. “Are you serious?”

He kicked his chair back and knelt down next to me, taking my hands in his. I didn’t miss the way they trembled.

“No,” he said softly. “I’ve been sitting here for the last couple of days, trying to find the right words. Then, when David said you knew, I thought that was it. It’s supposed to be black and white…right and wrong. Yet, I keep finding myself in gray areas.”

There it was.

He’d just put into words what I’d struggled with since allowing Monica back into my life. I hadn’t had the first clue how to reconcile my recovering addict of a mother with the image of a biker’s ol’ lady.

“I do too. Maybe loving someone means spending time in the in-between areas.”

“I went and saw Katya earlier—the woman found with Elizabeth.” I nodded, encouraging him to continue, “I wanted to see how she was. I guess she saw the same news blurb that Elizabeth did because she was in pretty bad shape by the time I got there.”

I couldn’t even imagine what that woman was going through.

He continued, “Her father showed up and wanted to know if it was done. Nikolay offered me forty grand to ensure that Landon never made it to jail and I took it.”

I mashed my lips together to keep from gasping, settling for a small nod instead.

He’d not only helped murder someone, but he’d accepted a bribe to do it. Then I thought of how Josué would react if it was me—forty grand was a small price to pay for the peace of mind in knowing your daughter was safe.

“Katya said it was blood money—which is true. I’m a hired killer, even if I didn’t put the final bullet in him, I’m still responsible. I gave her proof that he was gone and then told her to keep quiet about it, but I can’t shake the feeling that it’s all gonna go south—” Mike got quiet before asking, “Are you willing to be labeled an accessory after the fact if I go down for first degree murder?”

My pulse raced at the thought of going to prison. I swallowed the saliva that had pooled in my mouth before replying, “I love you. The rest is just details.”

He rocked back on his heels and studied my face before his face split into a grin. “Jesus Christ, Red. You gotta have a screw loose to stay, but I’m not letting you back out now.”

I smiled, even as my stomach twisted into knots.

His hand released mine and he cupped my chin. “I love you too. I feel like I fell in love with you on the beach in Galveston and I’m sick of fighting it.”

I’d been waiting for those three words ever since the day I met him. When he and I were just Jack and Charlotte, I’d imagined a life where I wasn’t the daughter of an addict. He’d apparently done the same thing.

And, so what if it wasn’t the fairy tale I’d hoped for? Loving him in the gray areas was a hell of a lot better than the lukewarm emotions I’d experienced with anyone else.

Feeling like there was no better time than the present, I chimed in, “If we’re being honest…” His eyes narrowed. “I—I hate flowers.”

Mike smirked and cupped a hand around the back of my neck. “You hate flowers? Okay, I feel it’s only fair that I tell you that you are, without a doubt, the worst cook I’ve ever met. With your skills, you’d manage to burn cereal.”

I cuffed him upside the head. “You could’ve just left it at bad…you didn’t need to elaborate.”

He grinned and pressed his lips against my left earlobe. “Next?” He whispered and I shuddered with pleasure.

“Next confession? I don’t like historical documentaries.” I winced, awaiting his reaction.

He cracked up at that and moved his mouth down to my jawline. “So, when you told me you loved them…”

I moaned softly and whispered back, “That was a lie. I was just trying to be accommodating.”

He shook his head and chuckled before his lips brushed against my throat. “I only turned them on because I thought you were as into them as I was. What kind of shows do you like?”

I bit down on the corner of my mouth as he pulled the neckline of my sweater down and his tongue dipped into the valley between my breasts. I shakily confessed, “Investigation Discovery and Sci-Fi stuff.”

Mike’s eyes met mine and the corner of his mouth turned up again. “Dead bodies and zombies. I feel like I’m having to get to know you all over again. You sure it’s not Food Network?”

I was about to punch him in the shoulder when he yanked my bra down over my breasts and brushed his beard against my nipples until they were stiff. I managed to groan, “Don’t tease me.” He misunderstood, and I found that I didn’t mind in the least.

Mike pulled me up out of the chair and into his warm arms, carrying me into the living room. “So, Red, since we’re having honesty hour here—got any other confessions?”

I shook my head as he stripped my sweater off before laying me back against the couch.

“No?” He whispered, “C’mon. My ego can handle it.” His mouth resumed its tour of my breasts; with his tongue swirling over one, while roughly cupping the other in his hand.

My body had rebooted and the speech setting hadn’t made it back online yet. I just laid beneath him, allowing his expert hands to work me into a frenzy.

He paused, “C’mon, Red. Don’t keep me in suspense.”

I shook my head and managed to string together, “Don’t stop. Please.”

He exhaled warm air against my belly as his hands drifted down to unbutton my jeans, taking his time sliding them down.

Once my jeans were on the floor, his fingers slid up my body until they reached my thighs. I relaxed and let them fall open and he cocked an eyebrow at me.

“Please,” I murmured.

He grinned and his fingers brushed against my panties, in slow short strokes. Just when I thought I would combust, he dragged them aside and gently slipped his middle finger inside of me.

I groaned and he stopped. Feeling his stare, I reluctantly opened my eyes and glanced down at him. “I could fucking watch you like this all night long.”

My face heated, but I kept my focus on him as he lowered his mouth down lightly over my clit. Another finger soon joined the first and my skin prickled. I was a can of gasoline that had just had a match thrown in it. His tongue and hand found a rhythm that didn’t seem physically possible. My back arched up off the couch and my hands sought his hair, needing something to ground me.

I didn’t have to tell him what to do, his tongue knew just where to go, while his lips grazed over my most sensitive areas, leaving me completely breathless.

I went higher and higher and higher until I was riding a wave of pleasure unlike any I’d experienced with him before. My breath caught and I kept a death grip on his hair as I came back down to earth.

“Darlin’?”

My chest rose and fell steadily, but otherwise, I didn’t move.

Mike tried again. “Darlin’? You’re gonna have to let go of me. Your legs are like a goddamned vice.”

I picked my head up and smiled at the sight of his blond head caught between my thighs. I released him and he sat up, exaggeratedly coughing, before running the back of his hand across his mouth.

“Better?” I asked.

He winked before unbuckling his jeans and letting them hit the floor. “Oh, I’d say that I’m better than okay, Red. What do you think?”

My mouth fell open.

He’d gone commando.

Mike retrieved a condom from his back pocket and ripped it open with his teeth before rolling it onto his cock with a smirk. I was drugged with arousal; my body capable of little more than small nods and whimpers.

He pulled his shirt over his head and stalked back over to the couch, his face full of need. He lifted me easily, turning me around until I was draped over the back of the couch. I moaned quietly as my breasts came into contact with the cool leather.

My body ached and throbbed for more of him.

Mike’s hands lightly rested on my hips for a brief second before yanking my panties down to my knees while I remained prone over the couch. His teeth grazed the curve of my ass and I instinctively pushed back against him. He nudged my legs further apart with his knee, as his hand came down to rest lightly against my lips.

“More,” I whispered, when he didn’t move.

“That’s my girl,” he replied, removing his hand, as the head of his cock slowly pushed inside of me. Once he was fully seated, he gave my body a chance to accommodate his size before retreating again.

I moved my hips back, fighting to keep him in. He let out a soft chuckle at my greediness, while slowly letting his cock stretch me. His hands lifted me until my back was flush against his chest. They rested against my belly before moving up to cup my breasts.

If I thought I was hot before, I was now an inferno. Each slow deliberate thrust pushed me closer to the edge of a cliff. I gripped around him tightly as he thrust deeply, silently begging him to stay. Sensing my need, his hips picked up a frantic pace while his thumb and index finger squeezed around my nipples.

My vision blurred and then everything went white when he sank his teeth into where my shoulder and neck met. I came back down with a loud gasp and rocked my hips, urging him on. His right hand moved up and cupped my throat, pinning me up against him. Using his fingers, he turned my head until it was tilted up, looking at him.

“I love you,” Mike rasped against my mouth and I involuntarily tightened around him. He didn’t wait for a response as he sucked my bottom lip in between his teeth, his hips slowing in their assault.

“I—I love you too,” I finally whimpered as my back arched, seeking him. His free hand dropped down to cup me as he circled his hips, regaining speed. We could’ve been hurtling toward a brick wall and I wouldn’t have stopped him.

It felt so much bigger than just our bodies connecting, it was as if our souls had fused together. Each thrust cast out our sins—each sigh another exhalation of doubt.

“Please,” I begged.

I didn’t know if my body was capable of another orgasm, but I was willing to try. His thrusts became desperate and his hands clamped down hard on my shoulders as he used my body to find his own release.

I loudly moaned, “Yes,” while keeping pace with each thrust. My pleasure increased to the point that it bordered on pain as he reached a fever pitch. I fell back down to earth with a silent cry, all sound lost within my chest.

Mike grunted as his thrusts turned shallow before his body stilled and his grip on my body tightened. Our breathless panting was the only sound in the room as he collapsed onto me, pushing me back over the couch. Sweat coated our bodies in a fine sheen despite the slight chill in the room.

As we lay like that, with him still buried deep inside of me, I imagined that he wasn’t someone who’d just helped commit a murder and I wasn’t the daughter of a biker chick. We were just Jack and Charlotte back on a beach in Galveston.

Two people without a care in the world.