Enemies and Playmates (21 page)
Read Enemies and Playmates Online
Authors: Darcia Helle
Jesse smiled, though the swelling gave it a crooked effect. “Job hazard,” he said lightly.
Lauren stepped inside. Her fingers brushed the bandage on his arm. “This too?” she asked.
“We need to talk.”
“My father, right?”
“Not technically,” Jesse said. “But yeah.”
“I’m so sorry.”
“Don’t be.” Jesse led Lauren to the couch, where he pulled her into his arms. “Stop looking that way,” he said. “You are not responsible for what your father does.”
“I know. But -”
“There is no but involved.” Jesse blew out a heavy sigh. “I have to tell you something, Lauren. You might not like it.”
“What?”
“I’m working with the D.A. on a case against your father.”
“What kind of case?”
“One that could put him away for a very long time.”
“Is that why he hates you so much?”
“No,” Jesse said. “This came about after what happened between him and me. He has no idea about any of it. Not yet, anyway.”
Lauren rested her head against Jesse’s shoulder. She told herself she should be upset that Jesse was doing this. But she wasn’t. Couldn’t be. She said, “Has he killed anyone?”
“Not personally. He’s not the type to get his hands dirty.”
“He’s had people killed.”
“Yes.”
Lauren nodded. “Will they arrest him soon?”
“It’ll take awhile to get the case together,” Jesse said.
“He has a lot of friends.”
I know.” Jesse smiled that crooked smile. “But so do I.”
“He’ll find out.”
“I know that, too.”
Lauren traced the outline of the bandage on Jesse’s arm. Tears burned behind her eyes. She swallowed them back. “I’m scared, Jesse.”
“I can handle it. But I’ll back off if you want me to. I mean, he’s your father, so I’ll understand.”
“He stopped being a father to me a long time ago.”
“So you’re okay with this?”
“He’s going after you regardless of what you do now, isn’t he?”
Jesse was silent. Lauren lifted her head, looked at him. His gaze was fixed straight ahead. Finally he quietly said, “I don’t think he wanted me dead at first. He wanted me to submit. For whatever reason, he wanted me under his thumb, working for him. When he figured out there was no chance in hell of that happening, he still knew it was too risky to kill me. I had talked to people about him. And there was you. He thought he could scare me into slithering away with my tail between my legs.”
Jesse sighed, shrugged. “But lately I wouldn’t put anything past him. Seems like he’s thrown caution to the wind.” Jesse finally met Lauren’s eyes. “I’m not worried about me. My biggest fear, my only fear, is that you’ll get hurt.”
“He wouldn’t do that,” Lauren said. The words came out with more conviction than she felt.
“He knows I could tell you things. He doesn’t want that.”
“I know he wants me to stay away from you,” Lauren said. “But I can’t imagine him putting me in jeopardy.”
“I’m sure you’re right.”
“Stephen would have liked you.” Lauren wasn’t sure why she’d suddenly blurted that out. Or why it mattered. Yet the truth of it made her smile. “He would have gotten a lot of pleasure from helping you with this.”
“Who knows,” Jesse said. “Maybe in some strange way, he is helping me.”
The thought comforted Lauren, despite the tears that blurred her vision. She nestled against Jesse. “Sometimes I feel like I’m existing in a nightmare.”
“Yeah, but the good news is you’re awake.”
“That’s the good news?”
“Yup.” Jesse ran the tips of his fingers lightly over Lauren’s lips. “You see,” he said, “if this was a real nightmare and you were sleeping, then I’d have to be gone when you woke up. But I’ll always be here.”
“Promise?”
“Oh yeah.”
Lauren closed her eyes, surrendering herself to the pleasure of Jesse’s touch. His pace was unhurried as he kissed her lips, then her neck. His fingers explored and she slowly lost her clothing. She ran her hand up his thigh, felt his hardness through his jeans. His moan was a low growl that made her quiver. She pulled him closer, kissing him with a sudden and urgent hunger.
He picked her up with ease and carried her into the bedroom. She helped him off with his clothes, then pulled him down with her. He laughed, told her to relax and enjoy. He kissed her toes, ran his tongue along her leg and across her stomach. Against her thigh he was hard, throbbing, so close to where she ached to feel him.
When at last he entered her, she shuddered with the intensity of the pleasure. She held him tight, looked into his eyes. And there she found everything she’d ever wanted or needed. So simple. So complicated. She kissed his lips and surrendered to it all.
***
Lauren reluctantly left Jesse’s apartment and stepped out into the dawn of early morning. Her skin still tingled from Jesse’s touch. She’d expected to feel awkward this morning, after having made love most of the night. But waking up in his arms and making love before the sleep was out of her eyes had been incredible.
She crossed the parking lot, happily humming to herself, lost in her thoughts. The sight of her father’s Mercedes parked beside her Pontiac quickly spoiled her mood. A knot formed in her stomach. Alex stepped from his car and fixed his disapproving glare on her.
Lauren stopped a few feet from her father. She said, “What are you doing here?”
“Looking for you,” Alex said.
“What do you want?”
Alex moved closer. His deep gray pinstriped suit was perfectly creased. Not a wrinkle or a speck of lint. His hair was neatly combed, every strand in its place. He’d recently shaved and smelled of Declaration aftershave. He said, “You have apparently not been listening to me regarding your activities.”
“I already told you,” Lauren said. “What I do is none of your business.”
“Such bravado.”
“My relationships are none of your business.”
“Spare me your self-righteous drivel,” Alex said. “The fact is that Ryder has been poking around in my private business. I don’t have to tell you how I feel about that.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Please,” Alex said with a dismissive wave of his hand. “Don’t bore me with your denials. Ryder has not responded well to my requests. I presume he will listen to you, given your current relationship. I also presume you will be wise and convince him to do what is best.”
“You had no right having him beat up,” Lauren said.
Alex laughed. The sound was quick and hollow. He said, “I advise you to make him understand that he is as good as dead if he does not walk away immediately.”
“How can you stand there and calmly threaten his life? Why don’t you just leave us alone?”
Alex’s voice remained as composed as his tailored suit. “I won’t warn either of you again,” he said. “You’d be well served to remember that neither of you has any power. I own a piece of everyone.”
“You don’t own me or Jesse.”
“No?” Alex stepped closer. His minty breath hovered close to Lauren’s face. “You may be surprised,” he said. “Give Ryder the message. Then walk away from him. Far away. Do we understand each other?”
“What is it you want?”
“I just told you.”
“No, I mean what is it you want from Jesse? What is it going to take for you to leave us alone?”
“He knows the answer to that.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“Tell Ryder to be at my office. Tomorrow afternoon.”
“Tell me why.”
“Do you think you love this man?” Alex asked.
“That’s none of your business.”
Alex smirked. “Which means yes.”
“Can’t you let us be?” Lauren cried in exasperation.
“Have Ryder do as I said and perhaps your relationship will survive. What happens next is entirely up to him.”
Alex strode back to his car. Before sliding into the driver’s seat, he turned back toward Lauren. His eyes glinted like cold steel in the early morning light. He said, “Tell me, Lauren, do you think he loves you enough to compromise? Or will his stubborn independence be more important than you are in his life?”
He smiled then and added, “Don’t ever be foolish enough to believe that love is enough, Lauren.”
Lauren stood frozen in the middle of the parking lot. The Mercedes purred to life and soon disappeared from sight. Heavy clouds cast a gray shadow that she wished would swallow her up. She glanced back at the apartment building, thought of Jesse sleeping inside. She considered her experience with love. A father who manipulated, cheated, lied. A best friend who had betrayed her. A brother who had lost himself to drugs.
What did she truly know about love? Could it be enough?
19
Jesse walked into his apartment, dropped his keys on the coffee table and sank into the recliner. He closed his eyes but, before he could relax, the jangle of his cell phone jarred him. He snatched it from his pocket, his eyes still closed.
“Hey Jess,” Tim said. “How’s it going?”
“I’m still alive,” Jesse said. “Which I take as a good sign. What’s up?”
“I heard something today. Thought you’d want to know.”
“What’s that?”
“Your name.”
Jesse rubbed his eyes. “Thanks,” he said. “But I already know my name.”
“No shit?”
“What are you hearing that I’m not going to like?”
“I don’t know where it started,” Tim said. “But word around the station is you’re more trouble than you’re worth. And we’d be wise not to help you with any info or to encourage you in any way.”
“Well isn’t that just perfect,” Jesse muttered.
“And it’s not confined to the one station. Or just cops, for that matter.”
“I’d like to say I’m surprised,” Jesse said. “But I’m not.”
“Seems like Covington’s looking to put you out of business.”
“Making good on one of his threats.”
“So what are you going to do?”
“Same thing I’ve been doing.” Jesse pulled off his leather boots and stretched out on the couch. He half listened while Tim lectured him about the dangers of getting too caught up in nailing Covington. Tim meant well. And he was right, in theory. But it was too late.
“I still think you’re crazy,” Tim was saying. “This isn’t your battle. Turn it over to the D.A.”
“No. I don’t trust the system. I have to see it through.”
“Do you always have to be so damn antiestablishment?”
Jesse laughed. “I can’t help myself.”
“Yeah, well you’re going to get yourself killed one of these days.”
“Hey, do you think there’s a group called antiestablishment anonymous?”
“If there was, you’d get tossed out,” Tim said. “You’d never make it through a day.”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence.”
“I guess I may as well tell you what I found.”
Jesse sat up. “Something good?”
“The names you asked me to run,” Tim said. “I haven’t had much time to spend on them. But one, Angela Walker, her sister filed a missing person on her yesterday.”
“What were the circumstances of her disappearance?”
“Sister says Angela was having an affair with a married guy. Angela wouldn’t give her sister the guy’s name. Said she couldn’t because he was well known and she needed to protect his reputation.”
“Interesting.”
“Sister also claims Angela had been depressed the past month or so,” Tim said. “Relationship problems was all she’d say. Sister figured Angela wanted more than the married guy was giving.”
“The guy is Covington,” Jesse said.
“Possibly.”
“Definitely,” Jesse said. “I know. Covington paid me to tail her for a few days. He thought she might be messing around on him. That made me laugh, since he’s married and has a string of women on the side.”
“Was she seeing someone else?”
“Not that I found. What else do you know about it?”
“It’s not my case,” Tim said. “But I took the liberty of stopping by Angela’s apartment building on my way home today. Tried to discreetly show Covington’s picture to a few of her neighbors.”
“I’m impressed,” Jesse said. “You actually played outside the rules.”
“Screw you,” Tim said. “You keep it up and I won’t tell you the rest.”