I'm Yours (6 page)

“It’s OK, I have about $1500, but it has to
last us, so we can’t afford two hotel rooms. You’ll be safer with
me anyway, OK?”

She bit her lip, but nodded. “How long do you
think this will take?”

“I’m hoping just a day, maybe two, so let’s
think of it as a weekend adventure, OK?”

“OK. Can we find some cheap clothes? I’ll
also need a change of underwear, a toothbrush, toothpaste,
shampoo...”

Ian’s mind didn’t get past underwear. He
wouldn’t argue if she had to go without underwear. Before he
thought better of it, his eyes strayed to where Meryl’s T-shirt
stretched so tight over Kara’s chest he could still see the outline
of her nipples. He bit back a groan. It was going to kill him to
sleep in the same hotel room as Kara and not touch her. Hopefully
he wouldn’t have to keep his hands to himself. They couldn’t use a
credit card. He’d given his one of his credit cards to Liam anyway
so Liam could drive up to Wisconsin and use the card somewhere.
That way if anyone was watching they would truly be following a
trail in the wrong direction. Ian doubted they were watching his
credit cards since they were looking for Ronan, but they couldn’t
be too careful.

Rather than shop and stay in the same town,
Ian found a Wal-Mart in Lansing and pulled into the crowded parking
lot. Before getting out of the car, Ian programmed each phone
number into the other phone as speed dial number one and handed one
phone to Kara.

“I don’t want to get separated, but in case
you have to go to the bathroom or anything, if you can’t see me,
press and hold down the number one and it will dial my phone
OK?”

“OK.”

“Otherwise, just keep your hand in mine and
I’ll follow you around the store like a dutiful boyfriend.”

“Boyfriend?”

“Kara if I’m holding your hand and following
you closely, people will assume I’m either your boyfriend or your
husband and that’s not a bad thing.”

“It’s a good thing?”

Oh yeah! “Well it makes us less conspicuous.”
Ian reasoned.

And he liked the idea of it, being her
boyfriend. The husband bit, well he’d have to mull that over. He
liked the idea she’d be wearing a ring that said she was taken,
that she was his.

“Oh.”

“In fact, we may want to buy some cheap rings
so we look like were married when we check into the hotel.”

“Rings? Wedding rings?”

“Yes, unless it makes you too
uncomfortable.”

She sat thoughtfully for a moment then shook
her head before saying “no, it would be alright if it makes us
safer.”

“I’m not specially trained like Ronan, so I’m
going a little blind here. I’ve helped him with a sting but never
protected anyone. I don’t want anything to happen to you Kara and I
think if we look like a married couple on a road trip, people will
pay much less attention.”

“OK.”

Kara’s head was spinning. Pretend to be
married, to Ian? She liked the idea a little too much. And when he
said he didn’t want anything to happen to her, the way he said it
made her heart skip a beat and soaked her panties. They were going
to pretend to be married and share a hotel room. She’d wanted him
as long as she could remember, but she’d ignored that want because
he was such a womanizer and they had a business relationship. She
didn’t want to sour their association by having a one-night stand.
But this situation was so out of control that their very lives were
in danger.

Who could blame her for wanting to take
advantage of the situation and finally sleep with Ian? She could
plead insanity. They could have sex and she could act like it was
this situation that had made her want him. If you’re going to risk
dying, you need to live every minute like it’s your last, right?
Right. She wasn’t exactly a seductress, but Ian wasn’t exactly a
paragon of strength if a woman came onto him. She already knew he
wanted her. He couldn’t deny it after that kiss.

Ian took her hand and they entered the store.
She got a cart and just like a dutiful husband, he followed her
around as she got everything she would need. She was jumpy and
scared to be in such a crowded place so to distract herself, she
went down the mental list she’d made as they walked through many of
the aisles. She grabbed things for both of them as she suspected
any wife would do. She got them each a toothbrush and deodorant.
Then she gathered things needed for herself or that they could
share like toothpaste, shampoo, razors, shaving cream, conditioner,
lotion, travel laundry detergent, a brush, hair cream to tame her
curls, and soap.

When they walked past an aisle, Ian stopped
her and quickly walked down to get a small cheap suitcase for them
to pack everything into. They picked up some snacks and Ian took
them to the camping aisle where he bought two sleeping bags and a
small tent. He also bought two hunting knives, a flashlight, some
rope, a hefty first aid kit, and a cooler. She didn’t know if these
things really had a purpose or if he wanted the knives to look
inconspicuous.

When they got to the clothes section, Ian
quickly found three pairs of jeans in his size as Kara picked a few
shirts for him. He seemed surprised to see the shirts in the cart,
but didn’t say anything. They were working together like a couple.
Ian grabbed some fresh socks and underwear and now that she knew
more about his underwear, she was more determined to see him in it,
or rather out of it.

In the women’s section, she got a two pairs
of jeans, two pairs of shorts, four shirts, and a summer dress. She
also picked up a pair of sneakers that would fit a little better, a
pair of flip flops, and some socks. She was sure Ian would
criticize her for buying more outfits than he had, but when she
looked at him, he just smiled reassuringly at her. When they went
to the intimate section, Kara was a little frustrated by the
selection of bras. The panties hadn’t been an issue they had a pack
of four cute cotton boy short panties with lace around the waste
and leg bands. They didn’t have a lot of bras in her size 34DD. She
was pretty particular about her bras but she didn’t have much
choice. She tried to hurry, but it was hard to find many in her
size at all.

Every time Kara held up a new bra, Ian got a
little harder. It didn’t matter if they were see through lace or
utilitarian cotton, the thought of the bra getting to support her
tits almost made him jealous of a damn piece of cloth. He’d always
been a leg-man. He liked tall women with long, long legs. A lot of
women with long legs were lacking a little in the chest department,
but Kara had curves everywhere. He could still remember the first
time he’d seen her. He’d been working at Bloomfield Advertising for
almost a year when she’d been hired. She’d been young about 24 and
not much experience, but she was tenacious.

His first glimpse of her had been from
behind, she’d been walking away from him and Erin, one of their
co-workers had been showing her around. He’d wanted to approach
her, but he had made it a habit to steer clear of Erin as she came
on a little too strong where he was concerned. But those legs, he’d
followed those legs from a distance, watching the gentle swish and
sway of her round ass. When she’d finally turned around and he’d
seen the rest of her, he’d stopped dead in his tracks. Maybe she
wasn’t the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen, but something about
her called to him.

At first he’d thought it was because she was
Irish. He’d almost expected her to have an Irish lilt to her
speech, she looked so Irish. Then when she had turned him down
flat, he thought he liked her because she was a challenge. But as
he got to know her, he realized it was simply Kara that he was
drawn to. He probably would have been drawn to her if she was five
foot even. And watching her pick out bras was playing havoc on his
fragile and neglected libido. After a few more moments of torture,
she was finally done and they headed to the jewelry counter. They
picked out cheap gold over silver rings, one for each of them. But
then Ian noticed a claddagh ring with a fake heart shaped diamond
cradled within two gold hands. Ian selected that ring for Kara
rather than a plain gold band.

After Ian paid cash for the rings, Kara
watched as he slipped his onto his finger. Then he did something so
unexpected, tears clogged the back of Kara’s throat. Instead of
simply handing her the ring he’d bought for her, he slipped it on
her finger. Her eyes shot up to his and he looked deep in thought
and almost as surprised as she was. Somehow when he took her by the
hand and led her to the checkout to buy the rest of their
purchases, she got her legs to move. But her mind was still back at
the jewelry counter.

“Thanks for being quick about it,” Ian said
as they waited in line.

“I want to get out of this crowd.”

“Sometimes crowds are the safest place.”

She only nodded as she started digging
through her purse. Ian could see a few loose bills as she gathered
them up then searched her wallet. He knew Kara was sometimes
impatient and when she received change she just tucked it randomly
into her purse rather than putting it back into her wallet.

“I have $233,” she told him.

“OK you hang onto it. We may need it
later.”

When the cashier rang everything up it was a
little more than that much so they were still in a decent place
with money. With well over $1000, they could last a little more
than a week in a cheap motel and still leave enough for food. If
this thing went longer than that, Ian would have to meet up with
someone from his family or they’d have to use the tent he’d bought.
He knew Kara might not enjoy camping and it left them much more
vulnerable, but it paid to be prepared.

When they got out to the car, Ian put all
their new clothes and personal items into the suitcase. Then he put
everything into the trunk except the hunting knives. He’d wanted to
buy a small firearm for Kara, but that would draw too much
attention. When he got into the car, he handed the smaller knife to
her.

“Here, put this in your purse, or better yet,
keep it in your pocket at all times.”

“A knife? What for?”

“Kara, there could be people after us, we’re
not totally in the clear yet, just keep it in your pocket.”

“Ian…I…I don’t think I’m capable of stabbing
someone with a knife.”

He didn’t want to tell her that when your
life is on the line, you do a lot of things you think you aren’t
capable of, so he just said, “what if we get separated? It will be
better if we each have a weapon of some sort on us at all times
OK?”

“OK.”

She didn’t have a pocket so she tucked the
knife into her bra. And just like that it felt like Liam’s jeans
were trying to strangle Ian’s cock. He wasn’t at all sure he would
last the whole night without being able to touch her. He found
himself planning to jack off in the bathroom like a teenager. He
hoped that would take the edge off. He’d tell her he needed a
shower, which was true anyway. He hadn’t had a shower today.

Kara knew Ian was trying to find a cheap
motel to make the money last longer. Looking at the area they were
in, she was glad they were pretending to be married. She honestly
didn’t want her own room. Plus, when she’d seen how Ian was looking
at her new bras, she had decided to try to seduce him. They’d have
this small time together and she’d finally know what she was
missing. If it was as great as her fantasies about Ian, well then
she’d have memories to go along with those fantasies. When she’d
put the knife in her bra, she’d seen his immediate reaction. She
hadn’t wanted to blatantly buy sexy lingerie to wear to bed, but
she figured the shirt Meryl had lent her without a bra was almost
as good as walking around naked in front of him, which should do
the trick. She’d never figured herself to be Ian’s type, but he
definitely seemed interested and they hadn’t been arguing at
all.

They ended up going a little past Gary to
Portage where they found a Super 8 motel near the freeway that
charged less than $60 a night. It was in a decent area and they
could be staying one night or more. Either way, Kara knew that at
that price, their cash would go much further. The hotel even
offered a free continental breakfast. She figured if she could get
some extra bread or bagels, they could get some lunchmeat and chips
and use that for lunch too. They’d only need to go out for
dinner.

They settled into their room and Kara took
the opportunity to change her shirt. They decided to eat dinner at
a bar and grill just across from their motel. When they were
seated, Ian pulled her into a seat on the same side of the table as
him so they were both facing the door. Earlier, she hadn’t been
sure she’d be able to eat, but it was now past dinner time and she
was starving.

“We haven’t had a chance to talk about the
meeting today. I hope all this shit didn’t mess up our chance.” Ian
said as he cut his steak.

“Was that today? It seems like a year ago. I
don’t think we lost our chance. I was hoping you could use your
charisma to hook them immediately, but I know they’re still looking
at other agencies.”

“I have charisma?”

“Well, of course you do. How do you think you
get all those women?”

As soon as Kara said it, she regretted it.
She didn’t want to talk about Ian and other women, but it was habit
to throw it in his face. Putting it out there usually reminded her
he was not for her. Now, it just made her feel mean.

“I don’t get all those women. Look Kara, I
date sure, but I don’t sleep with every woman I date. I don’t have
a bunch of one-night stands and I sure as hell wouldn’t ditch a
meeting for one. OK?”

“Maybe it’s hard to differentiate.” She said
quietly. “You’re always leaving early and coming in late.”

“Kara, isn’t that the beauty of working for
yourself? That you don’t necessarily have set hours unless you’re
meeting with a client or have a deadline?”