16. Briggs
Chapter 16
Briggs
"The ape, vilest of beasts, how like to us." ― Quintus Ennius
M y body screamed when I woke up the next day. But the first thought on my mind was still Rose. I wasn’t good at the whole ‘dating’ thing, but I sent her a good morning text anyway. Every twist, every bend as I stood from my bed, was agony. But I’d learned to work through the agony, to push through the pain. To be a man.
There was nothing fucking manly about being beaten by your father, though. I was almost surprised that he and Dean took off immediately after dumping me back on the doorstep and that Father didn’t continue taking his anger out on me. Rhonda was already waiting inside, and at some point in the night, she came in and left not only a new phone but a wrap and some medicine out for me, as well. That woman seriously needed a raise. She also set out a cooler full of ice packs and a heating pad next to it for the rest of my muscles that were overcompensating for the half of my torso that wasn’t doing so well.
A godsend of a woman.
I was sent to the hospital after the first time my father tried to teach me a lesson. He claimed I fell down the stairs, and the money he slipped the doctors and nurses who took care of me made it so they didn’t bat a single eyelash at the way my marks were targeted around certain organs, aiming for bones instead. They took his word and his money and left me for days as I recovered. But my body was getting used to it. The only thing that made me take an ice pack and put it on my ribs before getting in the shower was thinking about being near Rose and not being able to touch her. Not being able to hug her or bend down to kiss her.
One day of rest. That was all I’d need to be able to get close to Rose again.
The bathroom was dimly lit as I stepped inside, but the bruising on my ribs was clear as day. I stayed under the shower head for possibly an entire hour as I tried to work out the pain that coursed through my body. I turned my thoughts back to her—that soft skin and those lips—so ready to part and spew whatever came to her mind, even if it was odd or had a bite to it. But what I really wanted from those lips was for them to wrap around my cock and suck the insane desire I had for her from me.
Even with an injured body, my dick took no time standing to full attention at the mere thought of her. My length throbbed as I pressed my palm flat to the cool tile, my back arching to accommodate the stance. Reaching down, I pictured my fist in her hair, those dark strands twisting between my fingers while I put her plush, red mouth to good use.
My palm was nowhere near what I imagined her tongue could do, but that didn’t stop me from stroking my cock from root to tip, rubbing my thumb along the top like it was all in her control. My fingers were hers, and the warm water that fell on my shaft between each stroke was from the drool I’d cause by burying myself so deep into her throat that she’d struggle to swallow, much less breathe, before I’d slam back in.
My cock strained, the veins pulsing harder as my hips began to buck like she was truly here, on her knees before me in this very shower. I’d make her play with herself and tell me how wet she was for me as her fingers slid over her tight bud, winding us both up for a release as cataclysmic as kissing her was. I’d watch those tits of hers bounce as she gagged, trying to take all of me in, not relenting for a single second and loving the sounds she’d make with every garbled gasp .
Not a minute later, I was panting from the imagery, my forearm resting on the tile to support my body just as a heavy load of cum burst from me like I’d never fucked a day in my life. I pushed the wet hair from my face as I rinsed off before turning the shower off and stepping out, my body humming with the reality that having her on her knees for me might not be as far a cry as it used to be.
And then Dean called.
Another hour later, I was standing in my gym, knuckles wrapped, with a red-headed asshole breathing down my neck.
“What the fuck were you thinking, Briggs? You know he thrives on your mouth. Lashing out at him was the stupidest thing you could’ve done. And I’ve seen you do a lot of stupid shit.”
I punched the bag in front of me, and Dean took a step back, giving me space. “The way I see it, I saved the business money,” I replied without looking at him.
Another punch. And another. I punched and kicked until the pain on my side was offset by the rest of my muscles crying out in misery. I leaned forward and rested my forehead on the bag, my arms wrapping around it to still it against me.
“Listen, I’m not saying I’m not proud of you for figuring that out on your own. I mean, shit, you saved us a small chunk of change. But did you have to push him? Was it that hard to just—” He stepped into my field of vision as I turned my head to the side, his fingers pinching together while dragging across his lips like he was zipping them shut. “Is it hard to do that, Briggs?”
“Yeah. It is, actually.” I walked over to my duffle bag I'd hung on the wall and pulled out my phone. I still hadn’t heard from Rose. As I typed out another message, Dean came to stand by my side, eyeing my screen.
He sighed, his tone softening. “Why don’t you just call her?”
“That would be overbearing.” I didn’t give a shit about being overbearing. I was more worried about her coming to her senses. I stared down at my phone again, hoping I’d see some dots pop up. But, nothing. The very thought that I cared about what a woman thought about me, that they’d see my vulnerabilities, was unnerving.
Dean snorted. “You look desperate.”
I glared at him. “I’m not desperate.”
He put his hands up. “Okay, not desperate. So why is she ignoring you already?”
“Not sure.”
“Trouble in paradise already?” He slapped his hand over my shoulder, and I felt the pain sear across my stomach. “Sorry. You’ve looked worse before. Probably shouldn’t be here, but I didn’t want to discuss things with you at the house.”
“Do you have more to discuss than telling me I’m desperate or reminding me to keep my mouth closed around Father?” Saying Father made me wince. Not Dean’s slap to my shoulder, not the pain on my side. It was always that word like I could feel the pain that came after seeing him as if it was some twisted Pavlovian response.
He tapped two fingers to his lips as he scanned the ceiling. “Nope. But I did tell Jasmine about your date and I thought she was going to faint with happiness. Something about some guy named Auburn or Audi— ”
“August.” My fingers curled around the phone before I turned and put it away.
“Yeah. Sounds like a real asshole.” He chuckled faintly like that would ease how much I hated the guy.
“That’s because he is,” I replied flatly. I didn’t want to point out how August fucked his daughter because that would put a literal hit on him, and he was still Rose’s friend, so I had to play nice.
“Well, I’m glad she settled on the likes of you, then.” He rubbed his knuckles into my head as I walked by. He was the only person I’d ever allow to touch me like that. Well, him, and now Rose. Although the ways I wanted her to touch me and the places I wanted her delicate hands to wander to were much more indecent. Preferably while she was nude.
“Yeah. Sure.” Unless, of course, she realized I wasn’t lying about being no good, and that was why I wasn’t being replied to.
Dean’s brows furrowed together as I walked back up to the punching bag. “So what’s your game plan, then?”
I exhaled deeply, my eyes glued to the bag like it held all the answers. “I’m trying not to lose my shit and go track her down.”
“You haven’t put a tracker on her phone yet?”
My brow arched as I slid my gaze to him. “No.” But why the fuck hadn’t I? Probably because to do that, I’d have to be in possession of her phone for longer than two seconds, and it’s not like she’d let me take it from her to do that. “You have one on Jasmine’s?” I already knew the answer since he was suggesting it.
“Yep. And the car I bought her and every single one of her purses. ”
“Thorough.” Dean had no idea I’d tracked Rose for years, but with people who ended up unable to do the job I needed them to do. As much as I wanted to be the one to follow her around and make sure she was safe at all times, it wasn’t plausible. I mentally added tracking devices to my list of shit I had to get.
“Have to be with what we do. That and overbearing. You see the people we deal with, what if they find the things we care about?” Little did he know that’s exactly why I’d stayed so far away from Rose in the first place, but it was too late to turn back now. She was mine, and I wasn’t keen on ever letting her go.
Dean’s hand cupped the back of his neck, his face now giving way that he’d become deep in thought. “Just don’t fuck it up, Briggs. Jasmine is perfect, and you’re lucky as hell that she has a best friend who seems to like you as well, for whatever reason.” I threw a sweat-sodden towel that had been draped over my shoulder at him. He laughed. “Yeah, I should just call Jasmine and have her tell Rose what a piece of work you really are.”
I rolled my eyes over to him, fixing the wrapping on my knuckles. “Trust me, she’s aware.”
He grabbed his duffle bag and flipped me off as he walked away.
Another hour later, I sent a few more messages to Rose and then drove to Jim’s. I needed to discuss a few things with him, mostly how grimy his damn floors were. There was no way I was going to let a business I bought a few years ago take a dump. The only reason I purchased it was its favorable proximity to Rose’s house, and at the time, it was as close as I could get without raising any red flags to my father, who told me it was a terrible investment. But I didn’t do it for the money pit that it was.
Now that the team I hired to keep tabs on her was no longer, I started having Jim report to me if he heard anything about Rose or saw her. Really, anything about Rose Fields. He didn’t ask questions. He did what he was supposed to, and his business stayed afloat because of it. And since Rose still wasn’t answering, I figured I’d give her a little more time before I just showed up to ask her what was wrong.
A few minutes before I was to pull up to Jim’s, he called. And what he said made me push the pedal to the floor.
August and his crew of chauvinists and future rapists were taking up space in the parking lot, drinking beer they must’ve gotten elsewhere because August and his friends were banned from my store. Jim wasn’t above using the gun I placed behind his register to scare them off, but I told him I wanted to handle it personally.
So as Jim stood behind the glass with a mop in hand, staring out at the assholes, I strode up to them.
“Hey, hey, speak of the fuckin’ devil! It’s my boy, Briggs!” August’s arm slouched back against his shitty car while one of his friends passed him a shot. He tipped his head back, taking the shot and shaking his greasy hair as if he believed he was Fabio.
I closed the distance between us casually, folding up the sleeves of my jacket. His eyes fell to my fists right before I raised one and slammed it into his nose. I’d never felt a more satisfying crunch in my life .
“What the fuck, dude?” He stumbled to the side, blood pooling down his face, and if I’d never seen Rose in that dress, his blood would be my favorite shade of red.
I pulled him up by the collar as his feet scraped against an icy patch of pavement. “I let it slip before at your house, but I won’t ever make that same mistake again.” I drove another punch into his gut as I pinned him against his car, the pain in my torso screaming momentarily, but I ignored it.
“Is this about Clarissa?” His tone was hysterical, sputtering through his pain.
I punched him again. “Try again,” I growled.
“Rose. Rose. I meant Rose, fuck.” He spat out more blood as fear took over his beady little eyes. I pushed my forearm into his neck right as the alcohol must’ve short-circuited some part of his brain because a sinister smile spread over his mouth. His head lolled over to his friends. “Should I tell him, guys?”
His friends remained quiet on the side, one of them taking several steps back.
Smart friend.
I pressed my forearm deeper into his neck, making him cough. “Tell me what?” I gritted out through my teeth.
He laughed as much as he could with most of his throat closed off. “She wanted me so bad, b-but I turned her down,” he stuttered through the force of my body on his.
I smirked at him as rage boiled up within me, pushing past the pain along my side. “You’ve always been a terrible fucking liar.” She wouldn’t go for him, not after agreeing to go on a date with me. She was so much better than he ever deserved. Than I ever deserved. Pure in all the ways an angel would be before they mingled with the right devil—and I was the only devil allowed to touch her.
He spit more blood to the side and then tipped his head toward mine. I pressed in harder against his neck, just barely enough to make his voice garbled as he said, “She’s a slut, dude. She was practically begging for my—”
I didn’t let him finish as my forearm started to strangle him, pushing him as hard as I could into his car. I slammed my other fist into his gut until his legs grew weak and his breaths became shallow. And then, only then, did I release my hold and let him fall to the ground. He rolled to his side and started to groan.
August coughed more, his hand pressing to his throat. “Shit,” he said hoarsely. “She’s always wanted me, you were never in the fucking picture.” More coughs until I decided I couldn’t take it anymore.
I kicked his head to the ground, then pressed my shoe to his throat. “I’m the only one in the picture now. Got it?”
His weak, bony hands tried to press up against my shoe, so I leaned into the weight, resting my forearm on my knee. “Got it?” I repeated, pressing more and more until he tried to nod.
I glared down at him as I released him. “You’re lucky you aren’t fucking dead. Get the hell out of here, and if I ever hear you coming to this side of town again, I won’t hesitate to find you and kill you.” I gripped his cheeks and turned his head, making sure he could hear me. “And if you ever think about touching her ever again, I will make your death as slow as humanly possible. ”
The rest of his friends were gone, scurrying down the sidewalk like the little rats they were as I made my way back to my car. I cracked my knuckles and shook them out before I clutched the wheel, finalizing my thoughts. I was done with not wanting to come off as pushy when it came to her. It was time to track the woman I knew was mine down and find out why she decided to ignore me.