Chapter 8 #2
“I’m sorry. I don’t know what came over me. I thought I could control myself. But I was wrong.”
Cole started the engine and threw the car into gear.
squealing out of the parking spot. In that short period of time, the driver of the SUV had gotten out of the vehicle.
A cell phone was pressed against the young woman’s ear as she ran toward our as-nondescript-as-they-come car, undoubtedly giving the dispatcher at the other end of the line all the details she could glean.
A brave and incredibly reckless act, considering she had no idea whether or not we had a weapon.
“Malachi is going to have to replace the plate on this one again,” Cole observed. We swerved around the would-be good Samaritan, who struggled to catch a glimpse of us behind the vehicle’s tinted windows.
“The second time in three months. A new record. He may just have to throw the whole car out this time.” I groaned, already dreading my next conversation with Malachi.
“If he doesn’t throw us out first.” Cole pulled away from the parking structure, immediately turning down an adjacent alley in an attempt to avoid the main roads altogether. The vague description of our vehicle and plate number was surely being prepared to be circulated around by now.
“You mean me, not us.” I pulled off my mask as it was beginning to feel like I was being slowly suffocated by it. “They’re getting worse, I think, the flashbacks. I’m broken, Cole. Malachi should kick me off the team.”
“Quit talking like that.” Cole pulled his ski mask off at a stop sign, tossing it down on the center console. “We all have our demons. Hell, that’s how we found each other. Malachi is a forgiving guy—comes with the whole priesthood thing.”
“Yeah, I suppose. But I think it’s going to take more than an act of contrition to get him to grant me absolution this time.”
“Sure. Don’t get me wrong, he’s not going to send you out on one of these calls again for, well, maybe ever. But that’s okay. You kind of suck at them, anyway. I could have knocked that dude out with one punch to the head, not three like it took you.”
“I can still kick your ass in the ring.”
Cole and I glanced at each other, annoyance on his face breaking into a smile that quickly turned into a burst of laughter. “In your dreams, Greene.”
A red flash of light forced Cole to make a sharp turn down another side street as a state police car blew by with sirens blazing, affirming the fact that we would be taking nothing but backroads until the car was parked in Malachi’s barn.
Deep in the hollows of my chest, my heart still beat frantically with no sign it was going to abate, and I knew that no amount of deep breathing exercises or meditation techniques was going to help me.
Because they weren’t her.
From the moment she stepped foot inside our law firm, Ever had been the only thing that centered me.
The only time I felt at peace. It’s partly why I’d started watching her.
Well, that and finding out enough bits and pieces about her past that sent me to Google to uncover other pieces to the puzzle.
Being in her orbit, looking out for her in a way I suspected no one else had, gave me purpose.
So, I did what any normal person would do to calm down after beating in the face of an abusive piece of shit: I tugged my gloves off, reached inside the pocket of my jeans, pulled out my burner phone, and sent a text to the woman I had been, by definition, lightly stalking.
I’m having someone stop by to install your security system tomorrow.
Ever’s reply came far sooner than I had anticipated, and I smiled with the knowledge that my text had more likely than not gotten her out of bed to look out her windows to try to catch a glimpse of me.
How the fuck did you get my number?
The fact that you’re more concerned about a stranger texting you than you are about inviting one inside your home is exactly why you need that security system.
The only person I need security from is you.
Yet, when given the opportunity to pepper spray me or call the cops when you were alone in the car with me, you didn’t.
I smiled, watching the three dots on my screen appear and disappear a number of times, indicating Ever was typing something, deleting it, and then retyping it again.
Yeah, well, responsible life choices aren’t always my M.O. I seem to recall a certain someone benefitting from one of them.
Another reason why you need that security system.
Why? Don’t want any other obnoxiously elusive masked men walking into my house?
No, as a matter of fact, I fucking didn’t.
Ever knew that was going to get to me. I envisioned her back in her bed, smiling wickedly at her screen.
God, if I weren’t in this car right now, I’d be breaking down her door.
But I was, so my options were going to be limited to venting my sexual tensions via text.
My response to her could go one of two ways, and if I were being honest, I had no idea how it would land.
For as much as I knew about Ever, there was a library of information I didn’t know.
You can have whomever you want walk into your house, Ever. But I’m the only one walking into your bedroom.
Fuck me. Talking to Ever was supposed to calm my nerves, not make me want to roll my window down and toss my phone over the overpass. Someone should really have made a function that gives you a thirty-second window to rescind a text after sending it by now. A Save Your Ass option, so to speak.
Does this mean we’re going steady?
What? Well, then. Game. Fucking. On.
It just means I don’t like to share what’s mine.
Yours? I don’t recall belonging to anyone.
And I seem to recall that you had no problem belonging to me when we were together in bed.
The way I remember that night, you belonged to me, Sir.
What? Who had who bent over the footboard, begging them to fuck them into next week?
And who took who into the bedroom to begin with?
And who saw who and couldn’t resist taking them there? Come on, Ever, I can go all night.
I know you can.
Damnit. The last thing I needed was a hard-on while sitting next to Cole in a car with an APB on it as we were actively evading police, but I guess that was my life now.
If there was ever a good time to think of something unsexy, now was that time.
Conrad in a Speedo at a family pool party we had back when I was in middle school, came to mind.
Yup, focusing on my uncle’s wrinkly ball sack trapped inside a thin layer of spandex should do the trick nicely.
Why don’t you come over now?
My audible groan was loud enough to catch some side-eye from Cole. Of course, Ever would be asking me to come over right now. Somewhere in Hell, my father was laughing up at me because only this terrible timing could have been orchestrated by him.
***
I would if I could, but I’m kind of in the middle of something right now.
What? Are you out stalking another woman? Who is she?
Leave it to Ever to be jealous of the thought that her stalker may have a side piece.
I’m a one-woman kind of fucked up man.
Okay, then what is it? You really are a superhero, aren’t you?
I’m no one, Ever.
I don’t believe you. Why won’t you show me who you are, then?
I will. Someday.
And when I do, you’ll hate me even more than you already do.
If you can’t come over, then I guess I’ll just have to have my other boyfriend take care of what you can’t.
So, she really did have a boyfriend? No.
That can’t be right. I would have seen him by now.
My grip on the phone had become vice-like, and I held myself back from demanding Cole to turn the car around and head to Ever’s house.
My fingers were getting ready to type out a response when I was stopped by dots indicating Ever was typing again.
Allow me to introduce you to him.
I stared at my phone, all traces of anger evaporating when Ever’s date for the evening appeared on the screen.
A vibrator. The him in question was a question mark-shaped, lube-covered, purple vibrator.
You would think I would be relieved that Ever’s beau was made of silicone.
That would be the healthy reaction, after all.
But no, not me. Strangely enough, the thought of Ever’s vibrator being inside that perfect pussy of hers instead of me was doing nothing to quell my envy. Mentally, I threw up my hands.
Well, that’s it. No amount of envisioning Conrad in any state of undress was going to get rid of this erection now.
Show me how you use it.
The dots appeared again. Holding my breath, my eyes remained glued to my phone, praying to the God of orgasms that a video would appear, even if watching my alter-ego’s maybe girlfriend getting herself off as I sat in silence next to one of my best friends was a tad awkward.
A photo taken from Ever’s navel on down appeared on my screen. Her deep blue panties, trimmed with white lace, were pulled down slightly with the vibrator, firmly clutched in her hand, peeking out from underneath. Okay. This was a start.
Take your panties off. I want to watch you make yourself come as you think of me while doing it.
More dots appeared. Hot damn.
Nope. Sorry. This is all you’re getting.
Wait. What? No. She wasn’t going to edge me like that, was she? Son of a bitch, this woman was diabolical.
Ever, I said, show me.
What’s the magic word?
She was going to be the death of me. Was she trying to make me beg?
Better yet, was I really not going to do what she was telling me to do?
Nope. Absolutely not. If Ever was lying spread-eagled on the other side of an ocean of broken glass, beckoning me with her finger to crawl to her, I would do what any man of questionable mental health and a rock-hard dick would do and commence to said crawling, risk of bleeding out in the process be damned.
Goddamnit, Ever. Please. Please. Please. For the love of God, please!