Chapter 18
CHAPTER 18
F or the next four days, Scarlett felt like she was floating on a cloud. Kyle had spent the night—or early morning, rather—at her apartment every night since their first. His shift at Burger King often ran into the wee hours and, when Scarlett worked, hers often did as well, so it worked. Until now, she’d never known that her lady parts could be sore from good sex. She’d been tender from being treated roughly or having sex when she hadn’t wanted to, but she and Kyle couldn’t keep their hands off each other when he came by…and she was feeling those effects. One night, they’d fucked three times before they finally fell asleep—and she could tell the next morning.
She’d never thought it could be so good.
She even texted Marin to tell her she was dating someone—but she did not go into details. It was too new, and she still felt unsure about the future.
All good things come to an end, as Scarlett soon found out. What happened that Wednesday during her afternoon shift completely changed everything.
On this particular day, she was working a long shift. A little after three in the afternoon, it was still pretty slow but she knew that she’d get at least a few customers later on. In the meantime, she was cleaning under the lip of the bar on the customer side, a place she’d noticed had been neglected—and, since there was nothing better to do, she figured she might as well scrub it.
It was only at slow times like these that she would notice over the sound of the music when a customer came in like now. Without even looking at the door, she picked the spray bottle up off the stool and walked back around the bar so she could greet the customer. He wore a baseball cap, his eyes averted to the ground.
Oh. She’d only been tending bar since June, but she recognized the posture. This poor guy was a dejected customer, the typical kind of person who wanted to drown his sorrows in booze. At least she might be able to also lend a friendly ear if he needed one to accompany his drink.
When he slid up on a barstool, she’d already washed and dried her hands, ready to serve whatever he needed. “What can I get for you?”
The last thing she’d expected was to see those eyes.
Tommy’s eyes.
It took her a long moment to be sure. At first, she thought those almost-black irises only resembled her ex, but as she fought to keep her breathing as calm as possible, she noticed the tattoo on his hands—the generic skulls, along with the letters on the fingers that said FUCK OFF! in gothic script.
How the hell had he found her?
Fighting to stay calm, she took a deep breath, but before she could say anything else, he spoke. “An explanation would be a good place to start.”
That was the final confirmation her stubborn brain needed. Still, words— any words—refused to come out of her mouth.
Until now, she’d almost forgotten how his voice sounded. That gravelly hoarseness combined with the way he didn’t enunciate his words very well, almost as if he couldn’t be bothered to talk.
“I like the hair, by the way.”
Yeah. So much for a disguise. But her flaming red mane, the inspiration she’d taken for her alias, would stick out in a sea where most people’s hair was of an earthier color. She’d known brown would blend in best and, after initially coloring it, she’d maintained the roots faithfully every few weeks.
“What’s the matter, Mel? Cat got your tongue?”
It was like an out-of-body experience hearing her real name after responding to Scarlett for so long. And the way he said it was tinged with violence, not like the playful way Kyle called her Tink .
Of course, Tommy had been sweet at the start too.
Finally, she said, her voice low, “What do you want?”
“I ain’t here for a shot of tequila—but we could start with that anyway, seeing’s how I’m here already.”
Alcohol and Tommy were a bad combination, like gas and flame—but she hoped pouring him a shot would buy her a little time to think. How could she get Al out of his office? Although Tommy had never hurt her in front of people, there was always a first time for everything. The man had never been predictable, so she didn’t trust her judgment.
“Patrón?”
“Nah. Don Julio—‘cause you’re buyin’.”
Although her insides felt like they’d melted into jelly thanks to the fear churning through her veins, she found something else burning inside that allowed her to talk back—something she’d stopped doing not long into their relationship. “That’s funny—because if I’m buying, you’re getting Jose Cuervo.” Without another word, she pulled that bottle off the shelf, proud of herself that she’d had the guts to turn her back to him for a couple of seconds. From past experience, she knew that, regardless of a barrier like a bar between them, Tommy often struck when she was most vulnerable.
When she turned around, though, he was still sitting. As she poured a shot, she could almost feel the negative energy emanating from him, pulling her right back into that state of feeling like a caged animal. It hadn’t been that long ago, but the half a year she’d spent here had given her a buffer that had lulled her into a state of complacence and comfort. With Tommy back here so close, it was as if not a day had passed.
At least she managed to keep her hand from shaking.
When she pushed the shot glass toward him, she asked the only question—the only thing —on her mind. “How did you find me?”
“I hired a private investigator. You kept your car. It didn’t take him long to find you.”
She wasn’t about to ask how long ago he’d hired the PI to figure out just how long it had taken him or her, but she still wondered how he’d actually located her—after all, she hadn’t registered the car in Pike County and she hadn’t gotten any tickets. She’d sworn it hadn’t been a bad move.
Obviously, she’d been wrong.
And that meant she had to get the hell out of here as soon as humanly possible. Now that he knew where she was, she was in extreme danger—and she’d compounded it by leaving in the first place. Now she was at risk of losing her life.
“All right. Let’s go.”
“I’m not going with you.”
“Oh, but you are. I didn’t come all this way to leave empty handed.” With that, he walked down the length of the bar and lifted the bar flap as if he’d been working there for months—and then he was approaching her.
Her heart started thumping in her chest, panic infusing every vein. If she hurried, she might be able to climb onto the rack where they left the glasses to dry. From there, she could climb up and over the bar. Then she’d run through the back and out into the alley. Although she could get to her car quickly, she didn’t have her keys—but she had to get out of here regardless. She’d been walking around the neighborhoods enough that she knew a couple of backyards without dogs where she might be able to hide. She’d just have to make sure to grab her coat out of the office before she left.
If she could get out of from behind the bar where she was trapped.
Before she even moved, though, she heard Al’s voice from across the room. “Sir, you can’t be back there.”
Tommy ignored him—but Scarlett could see Al continuing to move across the room. Meanwhile, Tommy continued inching toward her like a tiger ready to pounce on its prey. She’d forgotten how lean and mean he looked—like every inch of him was pure sinew infused with hate and anger. She remembered Tommy watching a nature documentary one day when he’d been high as a kite—and she had never forgotten the vicious sight of a wolf and a wolverine fighting, the wolverine stealing the wolf’s food. Ever since, she’d thought of Tommy as that wolverine: mean, vicious, willing to take from someone for his own benefit, regardless of what he took, leaving carnage in his wake.
And that was what he’d done to her. Even today, she couldn’t quite understand how he’d managed to override her brain, so that she’d given him everything. But it wasn’t just the material things. She’d given him her heart, her soul, her self-confidence. And he’d trashed them all, only to benefit himself.
Now, like that wolverine, he was sneaking up on her, ready to tear her apart.
Al finally got to the bar, but Scarlett didn’t take her eyes off Tommy. “You can get out of my bar now or you can wait for the police to escort you. I’m dialing 911 right now.” To emphasize his point, he put the phone on speaker.
“911. What’s your emergency?” came the calm woman’s voice over the line.
Scarlett didn’t see even a glimmer of concern in Tommy’s eyes, but he did stop moving forward. While Al said, “I’m the manager of Tequilaville and we have a customer refusing to leave,” Tommy’s upper lip curled, a sight she’d seen many a time and had almost forgotten.
“I’ll leave.” He took one step closer to Scarlett, almost within touching distance, and said, “But I’ll be back.”
As he backed up and Al continued talking, Scarlett felt cold all the way to her bones. If Tommy knew where she worked, did he know where she lived? She had to get the hell out of here this instant. She was now on borrowed time.
Once Tommy left, Al, finished up the call and said, “They’re on their way.”
“I need to leave before they get here.”
“What?”
“I can’t be here, Al. I can’t do this.”
“But—”
“Denise’ll be here in a little bit and it’s been super slow. I’m sorry.” She rushed to the office, forgetting to grab the little booklet she kept at the bar to hold her tips—but there were just a few loose dollar bills anyway. Right now, her life depended upon her speed.
She pulled her coat off the hook and put it on. Then she pulled the hood up and over her face, tightening it so it wouldn’t be so obvious who she was. Even though it wasn’t freezing out, she wouldn’t look completely out of place—and just in case Tommy was out there somewhere watching, she left out the back door into the alley. But she didn’t go for her car—not yet—because when she got into it, keys in hand, she wasn’t coming back. After walking the length of the block, she started heading down the side street toward Main Street. Because it was bright out from the sun shining on the snow, she put on the sunglasses in the pocket of her coat, hoping it would also give her a bit more protection from detection. As she approached Main, she saw Amato’s, wishing she could evoke the warm memories from that first date with Kyle. Then, of course, she rounded the corner where the art gallery stood, and she kept her head tucked as if protecting herself from the cold—but her eyes were darting behind the sunglasses, looking at all the cars and a couple of pedestrians across the street. But if Tommy were hanging out in a business across the street, she probably wouldn’t see him.
A cop car pulled up in front of Tequilaville and parked. Although they didn’t have their lights or sirens on, she knew they were there to help Al. There was no better time than now to open the door that led to her apartment—but just because she was getting behind that door didn’t mean she was safe. Even after running up the stairs and getting inside her apartment, she knew her life was in peril.
And the only thing that would keep her safe now would be to run.